Month: January 2026

A new fantasy story coming soon that came out of a moment of grief and sorrow

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“A Maker of Magic” by Mark Piggott (from Franklin Publishers)

So, I have a new fantasy story coming out this spring, but there’s a bit of a back story I want to share first before I tell you more about the book. It all began about two years ago, in December of 2024. I just got back from my vacation in Quebec, Canada. It was Christmas Eve, and I got a phone call from my brother. My Dad was in the hospital and he was not breathing on his own. I needed to get home to New Jersey ASAP. I drove from Alexandria, VA, to Phillipsburg, NJ, as fast as I could. Although it was Christmas Eve it was not a night of joy or celebration for me. Before the night was over, my father passed away. He was 88 years old.

For the next four months, I spent every other week traveling between Virginia and New Jersey, dealing with funeral arrangements, taking care of my mother, planning for her future care, etc. So, I was teleworking with my regular job during the day and spending my nights doing what any writer would do when sitting in a big empty house filled with memories, pain, sorrow, and guilt from more than fifty years of family life. I sat down at the kitchen table with my laptop and I started writing. I poured the emotions of those months into a story that had started to form into my head. I don’t know if it came from all the grief I was feeling or perhaps from the love of my family supporting me in that moment. I can honestly tell you there was a lot going on at that time, so it was probably a little of both. Needless to say, I poured my heart and soul into this book.

I don’t want to go into the story just yet. However, I can tell you that a major character in this novel was the father, and I think I saw a lot of my own father in the father figure within this story. My Dad was a U.S. Marine, serving two tours in Vietnam, raising a family, including his two sons who both served in the military (my brother was a Marine, and I served in the Navy). The father in my novel was a former military officer too, teaching his sons how to be soldiers in a time of war. He did it by example, through leadership, strength, love, discipline and hands-on training to make his sons better than him. I wanted to instill that same feeling I got from my father into these characters.

But behind it all, there is also a love story. This is a deep, soul-searching love that transcends time, distance, and separation. This part of the story imitated the many years I spent apart from my wife on deployment with the Navy. I think we spent more time away than together in our first ten years of marriage, and yet we’re still together after over forty years. We share a bond that’s so deep that a simple touch, a song, or a picture brings us together even though we’re miles apart. I also think of my parents, who were married for over sixty five years but spent time apart in overseas deployments, too. That kind of love is rare to carry on for so long. Its the inspiration I found to fill within the pages of my story.

The same goes for the villains behind the scenes. I normally use the standard fantasy trope villains in evil wizards, devious nobles, demons, goblins, etc., in my stories. You know, the regular fantasy villains you’ll find in any D&D campaign. However, this was my first time dipping my toe into a darker vibe, a more horror themed villain. I wanted to really dive into the darkness within my soul, maybe because I was in such a dark place when I wrote this story, so much so that I dipped into the shadows with vampires, ghouls, zombies, and other creatures of the night. These were the monsters of my childhood that haunted me, the ones my father was always there to protect me from. I think that’s why I chose them as the monsters of this story. It’s full blood and gore, something I’ve never done before but it seemed necessary for this story. I felt a lot of despair and loss and I wanted to evoke that in this story.

I don’t want to go into much more detail about the story just yet, except for the teaser image from the cover of the two MCs, the Blademancer and the Enchanter. Sorry, no more spoilers, not yet. A Maker of Magic, coming soon from Franklin Publishers, so stay tuned here for more information! I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

Being an independent author in 2026 compared to 2009 is no walk in the park

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You wouldn’t know it by looking at me, but my first book was published in 2009, and it looks nothing like it does today. Forever Avalon was published by James A. Rock Publishing in 2009. They were a vanity press (I didn’t know better at the time, so sue me) that actually went out of business a few years later. At the time, I was just excited to be a published author. My first book signing was at a Borders Books (yes, and they’re another company that went out of business, no coincidence there), and most of the books I sold that day went to family and friends. It was surreal at the time, and as I look at that picture, I have to wonder if I knew what the future held for me.

It’s been fifteen years, and in that time I’ve published 1o books, five self-published, five with Curious Corvid Publishing, with more to come. It’s been a roller coaster of money spent, money earned (more spent than earned), and running from event to festival to convention to try to make a name for myself. It’s one thing when you’re 48 years old (like I was in this picture), but I’m 63 this year. That’s a big difference.

I honestly don’t think you are ever prepared for magnitude of everything involved, from hiring editors, artists, beta readers and marketing experts along the way. Then there’s all the supplies needed, from bookmarks, signs, table runners, canopies (for outdoor events) as well as ensuring you have enough books from one event to the next. Finding those events year to year is another task that has grown in volume. I have to admit, the growth of the internet has made my life easier. I mean, in 2009, social media was still at its infancy. I didn’t start this website until around 2014. Everything has exploded for independent authors since then.

If I were already retired and able to do my “indie author” gig full-time, but that’s not the case. I’m still a few years away from that. If one of my books takes off, that might change things, but for now, I just keep plugging away. I have cut back on some of my events, focusing more on book festivals and steampunk/fantasy conventions instead of the larger comic/anime conventions that are too broad for indie authors like me. Additionally, thanks to my involvement with the Northern Virginia Writers Club, I’ve been able to get into bookstores in the DMV through the organization’s contacts. It makes it easier for an indie author trying to get a foot in the door at major book stores like Barnes & Noble. Check out my Events page for a complete listing of my 2026 book signings, festivals, and conventions.

Honestly, there is no big learning curve. I think every indie author needs to go through this to get their feet wet and understand the system so they know what to expect. It’s not easy being an independent author. There is no multi-million dollar contract, signing bonus, or living off your royalties like Stephen King. When you look at the history of authors and how they started, we’re in good company (in the long run). Let’s just see how it goes.