Wolves Among Prey by Grim

5/18/2025

Multi-volume, multi-genre author Grim introduces us to “Wolves Among Prey”:
The third book in the Now Comes Grim series, Wolves Among Prey follows Deep, the last of his kind—a shapeshifter with the ability to heal, transform, and adapt beyond human understanding. Left for dead on a battlefield, he rises to find himself utterly alone—until he crosses paths with Rosemary, a psychic operative for the Unified Planets Intelligence. Fascinated by his abilities, she doesn’t just seek to understand him—she seeks to control him. Manipulation turns to alliance, and alliance into something far more dangerous: a family.
From their union comes Gentry and Shallow, two children unlike any the galaxy has ever seen. Gentry, a prodigy of intelligence and strategy, possesses a mind that can predict and outmaneuver even the most calculated of enemies. Cold, methodical, and impossibly advanced, he doesn’t just learn—he anticipates, shaping the future before it happens. Shallow, on the other hand, is an enigma. Born with congenital insensitivity to pain, he moves through life without fear, his mind a deep well of untapped potential. But beneath his quiet exterior simmers something unpredictable, something even his mother cannot fully grasp.
As war looms and the shadows of power close in, Deep and Rosemary must decide what it means to raise the next evolution of warfare. Their children are not just heirs to their abilities—they are something new entirely. And when the wolves go out among the prey, finally revealing themselves, the galaxy will never be the same.
A gripping tale of survival, manipulation, and the creation of something far more powerful than war itself, Wolves Among Prey explores what happens when the last of a species refuses to die—and instead, builds a legacy.

This story is amazing! It answers so many questions in "Now Comes Grim". I love the story on multiple levels. Besides filling the knowledge gaps, it is well written. The characters are consistent in their growth and care deeply for their family members.
Since they are considered bad guys, they are being pursued and must evade the government forces. Until something changes. I am committed to not giving any spoilers, so you are going to have to read the story for yourself. Only Mother could get it out of me. She is the scariest in the family.
I subtract a tenth of a point because I am picky about certain things.

You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Wolves-Among-Prey-Comes-Grim-ebook
https://www.goodreads.com/-wolves-among-prey

You can connect with the author:
https://twitter.com/GrimCalebWilcox
https://twitter.com/grimbooksllc
https://www.instagram.com/grimbooksllc

I have reviewed the first book in the series, Now Comes Grim here:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/now-comes-grim
I have reviewed the second book in the series here:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/whispers-of-power

tags: warriors, military, action, planets, space travel, war, terrorists, spies, intelligence, traitors,

Copyright © 2025 Mark L. Schultz, except for the author’s introduction

66 Comments

Grim

5/19/2025 07:03:58 am

Well here we are…

This book was so fun to create as it gives the back story of one of the most interesting and scary villains I have had the pleasure of refining. In Now Comes Grim, Caleb (my co-author on that one) and I needed something a bit more…
Caleb looked at me and said he has this… and Gentry came to being.
Then Deep and Shallow then Mother.

But the backstory was on me to create.

Here it is… this is what happened prior to the introduction of these characters in NCG.

I am glad you enjoyed it as much as I did all those years ago filling in backstories for this family.

Subtracting that tenth of a point is okay for this one. I am satisfied with a 4.9 out of 5, as it is a 5 Star review coming from you.

I am sure your questions will now be harder as this is my third interview with you and I know you still have many questions…

Mark

5/19/2025 08:50:46 am

Thank you for the insight behind this story. That was a good trick by Caleb, creating a character and allowing you the privilege of coming up with the backstory. Quite a backstory it is!

I do have more questions, no doubt about that. You can decide if they are harder or easier.

A note to our visitors. This interview is a continuation from the interview during the promotion of Whispers of Power which was in turn a continuation of the interview during the promotion of Now Comes Grim. The links to both are just above.

First question.

Do you think that a writer needs to read books, why or why not?

5/19/2025 09:02:19 am

One word answer…
Absolutely.

The English language is difficult to master. Reading helps to keep your concept of the language real and also improves your word skills.
Did you ever have to look up a word in a book to understand what it meant?
As children most of us did.
That helps to improve your vocabulary to ensure that you are producing the best possible stories for the reader.

5/19/2025 12:29:05 pm

Yes, the English language is quite difficult to master. One complicating factor is there are many versions of English that vary to some degree from the others.
Canadian English is a good example. It combines usage and spellings from American and British English. Word 2019 lists more than 15 versions of English.

Dictionaries are wonderful. I love them and use to spend an hour looking up aa word easily when I was a boy. One word about dictionaries in general. They are always looking backward. A word gains entry into a dictionary after it has been found used by some people in a printed medium.

New question.

What hurdle did you face in writing this book and how did you overcome it?

5/19/2025 01:12:49 pm

This is a little rid-bit that will get me punished by those that love and respect me…

So I wrote this one almost simultaneously with Whispers of Power, and, as such, completed two complete novels in about three weeks time.
The biggest hurdle to overcome was getting the owner of Grim Books to get the covers done in a timely manner.

I bribed her with a long weekend from training to get this accomplished.

Dirty little secrets of a hurdle to overcome.

Aside from that (as described in other areas) I stay awake the entire time I write. Be it one week (WoP) or a week and one day (this book) or three and a half weeks (NCG), my insomnia makes it possible.

5/19/2025 03:20:38 pm

Wow! Insomnia almost sounds like a superpower! You have certainly leveraged what some would consider a curse into a blessing.

The longest I have ever stayed up was 70 hours for a college project.

New question.

Would you agree or disagree with the statement: suffering is a requirement to be a good writer, and why?

5/19/2025 03:39:04 pm

Suffering.

The age old discussion of how it should be for a writer or scribe.

Is the suffering felt by everyone the same?
No.
What some call suffering, people like me call Monday.

I do not feel that current writers need to have a suffering in order to do well with said writing.
In days of old, it was laborious and tedious to write all the time. Quill and ink… or clay tablet and stylus. Laborious.

These days we can listen to whatever and do whatever in between lines of prose. I don’t think that can be called suffering.
Though others do suffer to write as they are not so unblinded to write in ways that they like and it takes many iterations and rewrites and all those hours and days of proof reading and editing.
At times I feel that the suffering may be from the person themselves being too hard on themselves and causing the suffering during their writings.

I could be way wrong.

5/19/2025 06:16:34 pm

You make a good point. That question comes from the Victorian age, at least, if not further back. It has lots of history. A long time ago, I watched a documentary about the training people go through to become a Navy Seal. A trainer said in one episode, the only easy day is yesterday. That stuck with me. It encouraged me to push on in difficult circumstances because I only had to get through any situation, one day at a time.

I hear so many writers moan about not feeling able to finish their manuscript, whatever pass they are on. I tell them to ignore the inner liar. The inner liar seeks only one thing failure and ultimately destruction. We all have doubts that we must push through, now and then. It's as easy and as hard as that. Keep moving forward or wallow. Your choice.

Are you way wrong? I think not. After doing the hard thing, you look back and realize it wasn't so hard.

New questions.

Is there an underlying message in this book?

Do you think most will miss it or will they have a realization or epiphany at the end?

5/19/2025 06:23:16 pm

A hidden underlying message…

Interesting question.

The underpinning message in Wolves Among Prey is that family is always first.
Always.

There is no exception to that rule.
In NCG, which WAP bleeds into, you can see the family dynamics always there, omnipresent.
But how did it get to be that way…

That is where WAP comes in. It explains the family dynamics and the family strength.

Regardless of if you cheer for the good guy or the bad guy there is always family.

This family is a little messed up… but a family none the less.

5/19/2025 07:55:35 pm

A messed-up family indeed! Cohesion is a primary attribute of a close-knit family. Family is a haven.

New question.

Do you ever brainstorm with non-writers and if so, is it effective or useful?

5/19/2025 08:25:24 pm

I never really brainstormed. I just wrote.

Not a cop-out, just what it is.

The whole storyline was mine to begin with. Nobody added or took away from it.

I did have others read it to see that it made sense. But I accepted nothing but constructive criticism from them. No storyline.

5/20/2025 08:20:14 am

Few authors will brainstorm with non-writers. Some will with a family member or a friend they can trust for honest advice. But it seems that most don't.

New question.

What was the best money you ever spent as a writer to enhance your career?

5/20/2025 08:25:55 am

The best money??

So far none of the money I have spent resulted in a boom in sales.
Dont get me wrong, I spend monies with several people and companies to do advertising and marketing. But none result in sales that sustain the output of monies.

I do know that it takes several years to start selling enough to sustain expenditures in marketing. Even longer to make it so I have a little left over. Some don’t take that long (good for them), some take longer (I may be in that group as NCG was released a year and a half ago).

I am just waiting for the monies to start sustaining my expenditures…

5/20/2025 10:36:17 am

Your experience matches that of almost every author. It is really hard to get noticed with more than a million books published every year on Amazon. Amazon started a publishing revolution by letting everyone publish their books. And it seems like everyone itching to write a book took them up on it. That is not the case, in reality. Writing a book that people will enjoy reading is hard work. Many never finish the first draft.

It takes time and the more books an author writes means more book sales in the long run, measured in years not days or weeks.

New question.

Do you subscribe to any magazines, newsletters, blogs or podcasts that enhance your writing career? Feel free to share as many as you would like.

5/20/2025 10:47:20 am

That question has the qualifier in it of being to enhance the writing career.

With that qualifier… no.

I do have some I listen to like Cocktails With Cav (on X @CavLiterature) but not to enhance my writing. It is to listen to others tell how they got into writing and all.

5/20/2025 01:27:02 pm

I better keep an eye on my qualifiers.

I think listening to a podcast like Cocktails With Cav is a good idea.

New question.

Have you ever created a throw-away character that developed into a medium or major player?

5/20/2025 04:15:11 pm

Just the opposite…
I had main characters that I threw away.

I never created a minor character that developed into a major character. All of the characters created had their own persona and part of the storyline. None major or minor. The only major ones were the ones on the covers of the books.

5/20/2025 04:36:47 pm

That is the opposite of many writers! Many have mentioned their surprise when a minor character waltzes into the middle of the writing and states the writer has got it all wrong. Most writers confessed the story was improved after listening to the character.

Maybe those disposed main characters have a story they want told. I think I know just the guy to handle it.

New question.

Why do most authors write in 3rd person POV instead of first or second POV?

5/20/2025 04:59:47 pm

Well that is an interesting question.
NCG was written in the first person present tense.
The rest in the third person.

The first person is a bitch to write in so that you don’t give away things by having the other characters do or say something that the lead character don’t already know. It is a giant juggling act.

Third person allows the flexibility to jump between characters with ease.

So, the answer is just the ease of writing.

5/21/2025 09:27:19 am

You are right. First person POV is harder to write as you say. It does require more care and requires avoiding head hopping so readers don't get confused about who is talking. I have closed at least one book for that reason alone. First person also offers more intimacy into a character's mind and is great reading when it is done correctly in my opinion.

New questions.

Were you a plotter or a pantser when you started writing?

How about now, has that changed?

5/21/2025 09:54:59 am

I am actually a plantser (hybrid writer). I use extensive storyboard, plot graphs and detailed character sheets that I update as they get old or have injuries.
But I also use loose outlines and let the story arcs organically take a field trip to wherever to make sure it feels real for the reader.

5/21/2025 12:46:12 pm

If anyone had asked me if you were a plotter or pantser, I would have said, "He is a pantser! He writes the book on his phone, non-stop until it is done." I would have been wrong! Don't worry, I am wrong about a lot of things, I am accustomed to it.

I think updating character sheets is a brilliant idea. Many authors have them. They help quite a bit to maintain continuity. That becomes so important in a series.

One author, a solid pantser, said he outlined each chapter after he finished it, because it made going back to check things much easier.

New question.

Do you think you were born to write or did you have to learn the craft?

5/21/2025 02:52:49 pm

I was born to BS (explains what I have done for God and Country since ‘87).

A person who is good at creating legends and backstories is a natural writer by sheer craft alone.

The difference between me and most others?
I wrote it down and made it into a book.

5/21/2025 06:19:44 pm

Yes, congratulations are in order for writing and publishing several books. There are millions who never finish a first draft. Many never write more than a few chapters and many who never complete even one chapter.

To you and all the other authors who completed and published a book I salute you. Writing a book is hard work to create an entertaining book that is easy to read.

New question.

What is the most difficult part of your artistic process?

5/21/2025 06:23:38 pm

That was and remains ….

Typing.

All three books (225K, 79K and 79K words respectively) were done on my iPhone.

Do I have a keyboard?
Yes. I have a Bluetooth keyboard, but that is only used for editing. Not original manuscript.

5/21/2025 08:00:32 pm

I have so much trouble with texting on my phone, I know I could never do what you have done. My typing on a regular keyboard is poor on a good day. I don't like to talk about a bad day. I salute you!

Let's flip the question.

What is the easiest part of writing a book in general for you?

5/21/2025 08:57:22 pm

That one is easy (pun intended)…

The easy part of my writing…. It is almost all true with only the names and places changed to protect the guilty

Also the sci-fi is added in to avoid having to go through censorship rituals of those in the government.

Nothing I printed can be traced to anything due to how I changed it… but the basic stuff is real (like the training sequences and the like).
In this book (Wolves Among Prey) the family is BS and made up… the cities are made up… the storyline? Has a lot of real stuff in it.

5/22/2025 08:51:45 am

You followed the old dictum, write what you know. With all of those changes no one alive can complain. The others have nothing to say also.

A few writers get hung up on writing what you know. They seem to think that a man shouldn't write about women and vice a versa. I think that is silly because with imagination and a moderate amount of life experience anyone can write about nearly anything. If the writer doesn't have enough life experience or doesn't do enough research, it will show in the writing. Some people like to put everyone into a little box.

New questions.

What did you buy with your first royalty check?

How did you celebrate when you published your first book?

5/22/2025 09:35:18 am

The first royalty check didn’t even cover the online expenses for the month for the advertising.
I have yet to make enough to cover the expenses put out.

When I published? I celebrated by getting two hours sleep then went to Hot Pot.

5/22/2025 12:36:41 pm

Your experience is similar to that of most authors. Those authors seldom sell more than 400 copies of their book in their lifetime. That can be very discouraging. I know a number of authors who have written a fabulous book or three and then disappear because the reality of income versus expenses is disheartening. Many decide it's not worth the effort and I don't blame them. A long game is required, like the stock market, you have to keep writing. The more books that an author writes the more they will sell. One author I know with a couple dozen books published told me she makes enough from her books to pay her electric bill.

Hot Pot is a great choice. Many authors go out for a meal to celebrate.

New question.

Who are your favorite dead authors?

5/22/2025 03:19:20 pm

I will go with my top three:
Poe
Shelby
And Conrad (Joseph)

Throw in Asimov for my Sci-Fi
And no one can do a Sci-Fi without
Roddenberry

5/22/2025 03:26:57 pm

Good list. I read a fair amount of Poe in high school. He was quite talented. I also read a lot of Asimov science fiction. He might have been one of my favorite authors during my school years.

Gene Roddenberry's writing for Star Trek on TV was fascinating and eye-opening at times. He covered a lot of hot topics back then. I was also a Twilight Zone fan as well as The Outer Limits. Quite a few young actors got a good boost in their career from those shows.

New question.

Who are your favorite living authors at this time?

5/22/2025 03:35:58 pm

Well that is a loaded question because if I don’t give a hats off to some people they may get offended…

But… I have read Jerry Cook (on X @StrytellinJerry)… not bad at all

I enjoy George RR Martin (not just for GoT).
I enjoy the Harry Potter Series.

I can stomach a little King, but not a lot (his book 11/22/63 (published in 2011) is my favorite).

I also enjoy the writers behind several of my favorite shows ‘Blacklist’, ‘Lucifer’, ‘’The Night Agent’ and ‘The Recruit’. (People tend to forget that screenwriters and show writers are writers as well).

5/22/2025 04:59:14 pm

When you said a little King, I was going to make a short joke until I discovered he is 6'-4". No short joke available there. I am not a fan of extreme horror. I haven't read any of his novels, nor the novels of Martin or Rowling.

I watched a number of Blacklist episodes, that was some good writing.

Yes, screenwriters and playwrights are writers also. Still telling stories just in a different format and medium. I have recommended to authors to take a course in screenwriting or playwriting. An author can get some useful tools. The change of focus can be valuable also.

New question.

How many times did you tinker with or rewrite the first page or the first chapter of this book or did the last chapter need more work?

5/22/2025 05:43:56 pm

This answer pisses a lot of writers off.

One.

I only write a paragraph/chapter/novel one time.

5/23/2025 07:44:21 am

Okay. That will make writers jealous without a doubt. But when I asked you about the difficult part of your writing process, you said you had a bluetooth keyboard that you used for editing on your phone.

New questions.

Are we splitting hairs or do we have different meanings for certain words here?

Do you have a favorite filler word or two that you have to keep taking out of a story, like just, like really, or like like?

5/23/2025 08:30:27 am

The keyboard editing is just for misspelled words and when I accidentally type too many of the same word (happens when one is using a tiny iPhone and thumbs). Not to change anything about the story, arc, line or anything else. Just to correct spelling and adjust where things are like the indentation of a paragraph.

I use filler words all the time and have to dig out the old thesaurus a lot. Which is how I have the same word accidentally typed twice. I have to look at the tiny iPhone keyboard when typing so I forget what I put that warranted the look up and then get a double word or two before I figure it out.

Once, I typed the same paragraph twice due to looking up different words to use. Luckily I found it before sending it off to publish and I actually liked the second way I wrote it so that simple oversight was beneficial.

5/23/2025 09:02:32 am

That makes sense. Thanks. I love my bluetooth keyboard for my iPhone also. I use it when I have to do a lot of typing on my phone.

New question.

What was the earliest experience that made you realize that you could influence and change lives with the power of writing?

5/23/2025 10:00:39 am

My father taught me very young the power of words. Not writing anything down, but eviscerating people with mere words. He was a powerful man in his own rights and was a true Alpha Male while working for the places he worked.
Writing came next… if one can lift up or decimate with only words, what can one do with written words… lots of words.
That was where power became evident. So with my own knowledges I went ahead and played the high adventure games and started to write down things I knew, places I had been, missions I went on. And the players loved being immersed in my world. They had no chance to be in my type of real world, they didn’t possess the skill sets needed to do what I did for God and Country.
The next logical step was to expand that to the rest of the world… with a little prodding from one of my best friends.

Then that is where we stand now… power wielded in a pen (iPhone keyboard) and memories of my life.
Does it change others? Maybe.
I hope if it does change or influence anyone, it does it in the right direction and for all the right reasons.

5/23/2025 12:17:05 pm

That is fascinating! So many authors honor a teacher or a relative as an inspiration for their writing. Some have mentioned their mother, but few have attributed their desire to write to their father. That pleases me greatly.

New question.

Do you have a hidden message in your writings for a particular person or group?

5/23/2025 12:44:42 pm

Oh that is the question now… isn’t it…

So a complete message for someone in the book Wolves Among Prey?

No.

Whispers of Power?
No.

Now Comes Grim?
No.

But…

Notice I said ‘complete’.

The message for a person(s) is there. But it is broken up in pieces over those three books and will be continued in my autobiography (to be released upon my death).
That message is…
‘I know where the bodies are buried and what you made me (and many others) do for God and Country that was not what you told the public.

How’s that for the answer?

Didn’t expect that one did ya?

5/23/2025 07:54:38 pm

I didn't expect that one. You are right. Splitting the message up like that is ingenious. It ensures that only the correct people will see it. If they care to look.

I apologize for being gone so long today. I went to a homeschooling convention and talked books with a lot of people. I might even get some work. Any work is icing on the cake. Talking with people who love books is the real cake.

New question.

Do you believe that a good book will sell itself?

5/23/2025 08:08:24 pm

No.

Nothing ‘sells itself’.

Someone, somewhere has to purchase the first of something… or get it handed to them. Then they can do word of mouth. Or a marketing firm can be hired.
Or a PR firm can be hired.

But nothing sells itself. It has to go through the channels of one of the above.
It has to be seen.

The best example from ChatGPT on this os the following:
Here’s a powerful example with a tragic twist: Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman.

⸻

Walt Whitman – Leaves of Grass (1855)

Today, Leaves of Grass is considered a foundational work of American literature, and Walt Whitman is hailed as one of the greatest poets the country ever produced. But when he self-published the first edition in 1855…

⸻

What he did:
   •   Printed it himself (just 795 copies).
   •   Left the cover blank except for the title.
   •   Didn’t put his name on the cover.
   •   Included no table of contents, no explanation, no traditional structure—just a strange, free-flowing epic poem (Song of Myself) in an unconventional format.
   •   Assumed the power of his words and vision would speak for itself.

⸻

What happened:
   •   The book barely sold.
   •   Most critics were confused or hostile—calling it obscene, incoherent, or egotistical.
   •   Whitman sent a few review copies out, but there was no real promotion or explanation of what he was trying to do.
   •   He truly believed the genius of it would be obvious—and thought that people just needed to read it to understand.

But they didn’t.

⸻

What saved it:
   •   Ralph Waldo Emerson, a major literary figure at the time, wrote him a glowing letter praising it as “the most extraordinary piece of wit and wisdom that America has yet contributed.”
   •   Whitman published that letter without permission in his second edition, trying to ride its coattails into public favor.
   •   Still, he struggled for decades with obscurity and financial hardship.

He revised and re-released Leaves of Grass nine times before he died—still convinced it would one day matter.

⸻

The lesson:

Whitman had genius—but he expected the work to carry itself, without context, framing, or outreach. For decades, the world mostly ignored it.

“No matter how brilliant the work, the world needs an invitation to see it.”

⸻

Let me know if you want a modern version of this—there are indie authors and inventors still making the same mistake today.

So, as I said… nothing sells itself. There has to be a little effort to get it started.

5/24/2025 10:11:26 am

That is an interesting analysis, the AI is quite good at gathering data and reflecting the opinions of humans in that data. The history revealed by the data is fascinating. The lengths some people will go to are revealing. Thanks for sharing that bit.

Your answer to my question is very literal and different from most authors' answers. You are quite correct; a book can't sell itself since it is an inanimate object. Energy must be input by a human for anyone to have a chance of seeing it. Whitman wanted people to see his book and he exerted a lot of energy to that end, yet he didn't want anyone to know his authorship in the matter. It seems to me that hubris got in the way of success for him as has happened to many.

New question.

Do you think good marketing can overcome the limitations of a mediocre book?

5/24/2025 10:17:51 am

Good marketing?
No.

Great marketing?
Absolutely.

Great marketing has shaped history and the stories surrounding history for centuries. Even the most catastrophic events in history can be marketed to be the best (Custer’s Last Stand anyone??).

The problem for indie writers is finding that marketer or promoter that can elevate the story, mediocre or better, to the levels that are desirable to show it is, indeed, great marketing (or even good marketing).

5/24/2025 01:35:37 pm

That is a good point. Great marketing can overcome many deficiencies, even the truth sometimes. Some say that history is written by the victors. There is a lot of truth in that.

So many marketers promise the moon and deliver dust. The old adage is true, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. Finding a good marketer or promoter is a serious issue for authors. With more than a million books being published yearly it takes a lot of work to be noticed. I am a book promoter and the only thing I promise is exposure. I am leery of anyone who promises sales.

To complicate the issue, there are marketers that have nothing in mind beside extracting as much money from your wallet as they can. Writer Beware is a blog written by Victoria Strauss and she is dedicated to exposing the scammers at every level of the writing industry. She is very factual and has lots of evidence to back her claims.

New question.

In your experience, which marketing avenues have been the most rewarding or profitable?

5/24/2025 04:21:16 pm

Profitable?
None. (Refer to earlier answers about how out of pocket this venture is for me)

Rewarding?
This. Cocktails with Cav. Cathy’s Promos. Joe Books.

All have been fantastic to work with and affordable.

But profitable????? Nah. Still waiting on my golden egg.

5/24/2025 05:45:57 pm

Finding a reliable marketer is a good start. For most authors, it's a multi-year slog to profitability in any given month or quarter.

There are a lot of people who were early adopters of e-books and scrambled to find a reader. Some writers saw the goose laying a golden egg and wrote books as fast as they could, frequently with minimal editing. Most of those readers were soured on e-books and never returned.

New question.

What else are planning to do to promote and market your books over the next few months?

5/24/2025 05:49:06 pm

Well…

I am actually planning on doing nothing more than what I am doing.
Selling books is not reallly my intent for publishing.
My intent was just to say I was published.
Nothing more.

That there are hidden messages and the like are just a bonus for merely being published.

5/24/2025 07:30:06 pm

I haven't seen that answer to this question before. You just woke me up! ;-) Every author I can recall has said something about maintaining course or trying something new.

Honestly, Amazon sells ads to authors and the people in that business like Dave Chesson of kindlepreneur.com have been studying the ebb and flow of success that authors who buy ads experience. Dave has found that Amazon is always changing or making adjustments to the algorithms that control who sees what. The strategy that worked last month probably isn't as effective this month and might be detrimental in three months.
The way Amazon sets up the ads with bidding for exposure and not exceeding a preset amount seems a little like gambling to me. The casino always wins.

Keeping with the current strategy will be fine for you, unless you're buying ads on Amazon or some other platform.

New question.

What is the biggest myth about writing that you can dispel that would help aspiring authors?

5/24/2025 08:05:51 pm

Oh shit!!!!

What a question!

The biggest myth is that you need someone to help you publish (‘and it will only cost you this much to get that fabulous manuscript to publish. Just sign here and send some money').
Honestly people. I fell for that shit with NCG. Had no clue what I was doing!
But the next two??
We did it all ourselves, writing, editing, proofing, cover (shit hot if you ask me for WAP), uploading, bleed, page numbering… yea….

We do run a company that will do it for you for a few… of course we do. We have the proof we can do it for you.
But the myth that you need help??
BUSTED!

If my dumb ass can figure it out and assemble a team to help… so can you.

5/25/2025 08:01:51 am

You busted that myth wide open! Fabulous.

Every aspect of the book industry is hard the first time you tackle it. Everything is hard the first time, it's the way life is. The knowledge gained by our ancestors perishes with them unless we learn from them or they write a book.

Every author has the choice to educate themselves or not. If they decide they want to pay someone else to do what they don't want to learn that is their choice. Some say it's too hard or too expensive and so is ignorance.

Publishing a book without doing everything possible to make it the best it can be is likely to be more expensive in the long run because sales will be missed. At the same time, there is no guarantee of sales. There are many reasons why a book doesn't sell and those reasons are different for every book. If the story matters an author will make the choices necessary to get the book published.

You conquered and learned a lot. Congratulations. You are making your knowledge available to others and many authors do that. I applaud paying it forward by helping others.

New question.

Some authors go to great lengths to get inside the heads of their characters. Some create a biography, find photos that match the picture in their head, fill out psychological profiles. What do you do in that regard, if anything?

5/25/2025 08:12:32 am

Nothing really.

I had a picture of the Grim Reaper near me all the time. Just to show what Grim really is as he is mainly an autobiographical character.
The rest of the characters in all the books are based on someone in my real life from my world travels and paths I made in life.
Even the family… Caleb may have written them into existence and gave them their powers and all, but the family dynamics, the backstories and, specifically, their demeanor are from real people.
Made it easier on me.
I’m all for easier.

5/25/2025 09:33:32 am

The life of Riley is an easy life. ;-)
You are one of the lucky ones, many struggle creating their characters out of thin air. One of my clients created a tool to help authors with fleshing out their characters. Here is a copy-and-paste link for a guest blog elsewhere on my website or you can hit the search box below. https://www.wordrefiner.com/guest-blogs/character-creation Rick is also a client. In this blog he describes a website he created to help authors create psychologically congruent characters. He uses multiple scales and offers examples from literature and movies. You might find it useful.

New question.

How do you balance the demands on your time as a writer with personal relationships?

5/25/2025 10:40:10 am

I’m supposed to have a personal life???

Just kidding.

I don’t sleep much, and I write straight through. So when it is time to pen a book, I warn the others and dig into what is needed.
They wait until I am done and we carry on like nothing happened for the past week or two.

It is no different than any other job I have held. The work is work. The off work time is just that.
I don’t allow home to interfere with work and I don’t allow work to interfere with home. They will both be present when I return to to it.

5/25/2025 01:46:02 pm

I think I found your middle name, Hardcore.

In some ways that makes you a lucky dog! Most authors don't have the "luxury" of ignoring the world for more than an hour or two at a time. Of course, they are not you.

New questions.

How long ago did you decide to write a book?

Was there a specific moment or incident?

5/25/2025 01:52:34 pm

That is a question I get a lot of.
I wrote the storylines for a high adventure game called Warhammer 40,000.

I used all my past events in my life to do the storyline. All the NPC’s were my friends that I had during those things that allowed me to write so accurately about war and training and the like.

After many many years of playing a campaign, it ended.
One of the players said I might as well write a book.
He said that the stories around the playing of the game scenarios after the fact would make a great book.

So here we are… that friend told me that in 2018.

5/25/2025 05:08:46 pm

We are glad you listened to your friend. I might have asked you that question in one of the other promotions worded differently. Thank you for your patience.

I don't think you are the first person to start writing out of a role-playing game. I discovered there is a sub-genre of fantasy that is called LitRPG. I promoted a book called The Fight of the Gnomes several years ago. I have never played a game like that but I enjoyed the story.

New question.

Do you have any other creative outlets to pursue if you didn't write?

5/25/2025 05:17:21 pm

Creative outlets?
Not so much so. I no longer play the games.
Destructive outlets?
I still weight lift, do martial arts and keep learning how to walk better.

5/25/2025 07:23:28 pm

Exercising the body is a good creative outlet in my mind. Those are good activities that allow the creative mind to solve problems. Different authors engage in different activities to free up their creative mind or muse of inspiration. Any number of activities such as gardening, walking, running, cooking, baking, folding laundry; the common thread is the activities do not require higher-level thinking. Personally, I liked to rake leaves when I owned a house.

New question.

Is there a cause you are passionate about, charitable or otherwise?

5/26/2025 07:43:43 am

Glad you asked…

I was diagnosed with cancer last year. Had to have surgery and all.
Currently cancer free, but I get checked all the time.

A portion of the net proceeds from the sale of the Now Comes Grim series goes to NAVREF.
(As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, NAVREF facilitates contributions that support its mission to advance medical research and education benefiting veterans.)

While not exclusively focused on cancer research, the National Association of Veterans’ Research and Education Foundations (NAVREF) supports a network of VA-affiliated nonprofit research and education corporations. These organizations facilitate research, including studies related to cancer, at VA medical centers nationwide.

5/26/2025 08:00:35 am

NAVREF is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. Their Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN) is 52-1784596.

If you’re interested in supporting NAVREF’s mission, you can make a donation through their official website: https://navref.org/Donate.

5/26/2025 10:16:17 am

NAVREF sounds like a worthy organization. I hope many contribute to their mission.

Last question.

Did you have a favorite book as a child?

5/26/2025 10:45:18 am

What a way to end the interview!

So I will break this down by age group:
Before my 8th year around the sun I was enthralled by the artwork and the story Where the Wild Things Are (written and illustrated by Maurice Sendak, first published in 1963).

After that my next favorite book would have to be The Hardy Boys. Fantastic and here is a little history of that series:
The Hardy Boys books were originally written under the pen name Franklin W. Dixon, but the actual stories were written by various ghostwriters.

The series was created by Edward Stratemeyer, the founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate, which also created Nancy Drew and other popular children’s series. The first Hardy Boys books were written in 1927, with Leslie McFarlane writing many of the earliest and most beloved titles. He was one of the Syndicate’s main ghostwriters and brought a lot of personality to the series, though his name didn’t appear on the covers.

Then as I was enlisting into the USAF DEP Program, I found a fantastic book Taliesin. Blew me away and sparked my interest in the mythical worlds of Celtic histories.
It became a series that I still have all of the books from:
Stephen R. Lawhead wrote The Pendragon Cycle, a richly imagined series that blends Arthurian legend with elements of Celtic mythology and Christian themes.

The main books in the series are:
1. Taliesin (1987) – A mythic origin story, focusing on the bard Taliesin and the fall of Atlantis.
2. Merlin (1988) – A retelling of Merlin’s life from a unique and spiritual perspective.
3. Arthur (1989) – Chronicles the rise of King Arthur, blending history and legend.
4. Pendragon (1994) – Focuses on Arthur’s kingdom and the war to preserve it.
5. Grail (1997) – Introduces the Holy Grail and further trials for Arthur’s court.
6. Avalon (1999) – A sort of epilogue or alternate continuation set in a more modern age.

Lawhead’s Pendragon Cycle stands out for its historical grounding, spiritual depth, and lyrical prose. It’s a favorite among readers who enjoy mythic fantasy with a deeper philosophical or religious undertone.

After that I was an adult and I read a lot of books yearly. I enjoy reading and watching my favorite television shows as discussed earlier!
Fantastic ending to the interview!

5/26/2025 11:12:13 am

I read a series parallel to the Hardy Boys titled The Happy Hollisters. Written by Jerry West, a pen name assigned to him by the Stratemeyer Syndicate. His real name was Andrew E. Svenson and he was one of the writers working for Stratemeyer. Andrew wrote a few of the Hardy Boys books and perhaps a few others.
I met Andrew's grandson at a convention. He was reissuing the Happy Hollisters series. I think he was also reissuing the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew but I am not certain of that.

I want to read that series by Lawhead, it sounds wonderful.

Grim, I have thoroughly enjoyed our conversation this week. You have been a fabulous guest. I am honored to help you promote this book and the first two volumes in the series. I hope you sell lots of books.

Until next time, keep on writing.

5/26/2025 11:19:25 am

You have been a wonderful host throughout the process and a gifted orator in your own rights.

I hope the insights into me help someone, somewhere pick up an instrument and write a story then publish it.

Good luck and good fortune to all of your readers and to you my friend.

Wolves Among Prey by Grim

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