I'm Retiring American Dirt
Hey everyone. James here. This is my final post on American
Dirt. It's been a long ride full of lessons, many of them reminding me how much
I don't know- about writing, about
politics, and most of all, what it takes to make a difference.
There's a few things I want to say, but first and foremost,
I am not sorry for starting this blog. American Dirt was supposed to be less
political and more entertaining, and then suddenly America went full tilt into
a volatile political climate. I did my best to weather the waters. I always
told the truth to the absolute best of my ability, I never once purposefully
lied to you. In the end though, the waves were/are too tall, America needs much
more help than a fantasy writer can provide through easily digestible blog
posts.
I am NOT leaving politics altogether. America needs help,
and just because I'm a fantasy writer does not relieve me of my
responsibilities as a citizen. I know that. My blog posts,
admittedly, saw traffic, but they did not create conversations often. When they
did, the conversation was often negative, often my fault cause I hadn't learned
how to handle people who had no intention of giving me an inch. I didn't handle
well the internet's walls of blind hate. It drove me to be quiet, it drove me
to depression, and it kept me from my writing. I let "them" win, shut
me down completely, and it was utterly unhealthy for me to try and man those
storms.
But I can't stop writing. I CAN and HAVE changed avenues. If
you enjoyed my writing, and you enjoy fantasy, I am putting together a new blog
called Spellbooks now. There, we will discuss fantasy races, magic systems, and
other fantasy books. I'm sure politics will crop in here and there, as
fantasy is nothing if not a filter of real life societal issues; but it won't
be the focus. It won't be MY focus, as it became on American Dirt.
I realize I'm probably losing respect from a lot of people.
That's okay. I'm back to being healthy. I'm prepared to chase down a daily word
count and write a new novel. I have friends to lean on. In time, perhaps you'll
understand even if you don't outright forgive me. American Dirt, much like
American politics, simply proved to be unhealthy for me. That's all, I'm moving
on.
I hope you will join me on Spellbooks when I release it in a
week or two. Even if you don't, I want to thank you for reading my thoughts
here, and teaching me some writerly lessons along the way.
