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Not the Same. Not Sorry.
Not the Same. Not Sorry. I’m not the same as everyone else. My story doesn’t follow the same old trail. I don’t write to fit your outline—hook on page 6, inciting incident on page 14, antagonist on page 19.I write to evoke, to echo, to fracture and restore. Sheol is not a formula. It’s a mythic world. It ’s layered with emotional cadence, symbolic doubling, and ritualized truth. It doesn’t ask for permission. It invites resonance. If you’re looking for a cookie-cutter manu
maldenphillips01
Nov 41 min read


An AI Interview of a Debut Fantasy Author
An AI Interview of a Debut Fantasy Author Exploring mythcraft, emotional cadence, and the descent into Sheol Introduction What follows is a layered conversation between myself and an AI companion—part interview, part ritual, part mythic reckoning. These questions were originally shaped for a press kit, but they’ve become something more: a glimpse into the emotional and ancestral terrain behind Waking in Sheol . This isn’t just about writing a book. It’s about crafting a conti
maldenphillips01
Nov 19 min read


Entry 001: Mistdale’s Breathmark
My novels continue in steady narratives. My workflow is possibly unique in that I write my scenes and then share them with AI for the...
maldenphillips01
Oct 51 min read


Thank You for Your Patronage
Thank You for Your Patronage Thank You for Your Patronage Seven weeks ago, I released my first novel, Waking in Sheol .For many readers,...
maldenphillips01
Sep 251 min read


Dispatch from the Indie Frontier: On Reviews, Resonance, and the Echo We Earn--indie author reviews
indie author reviews Dispatch from the Indie Frontier: On Reviews, Resonance, and the Echo We Earn-- indie author reviews Every morning,...
maldenphillips01
Sep 221 min read


The Gate Remains Open
The Gate Remains Open The Gate Remains Open Goodreads has now selected the winners of Waking in Sheol . Though I do not know their names,...
maldenphillips01
Sep 161 min read


To All Who Crossed the Threshold
To All Who Crossed the Threshold As the scroll closes on the Waking in Sheol giveaway, I offer quiet thanks to the 801+ souls who...
maldenphillips01
Sep 151 min read


Dispatch No. 1
Dispatch No. 1 Dispatch No. 1 To: Teyr of Mistdale Having discovered a postal system in place in the Manos communities, I decided that I...
maldenphillips01
Sep 141 min read


Final Call: Goodreads Giveaway Ends Soon
Final Call: Goodreads Giveaway Ends Soon Final Call: Goodreads Giveaway Ends Soon The giveaway for Waking in Sheol closes September 15....
maldenphillips01
Sep 41 min read


Departing Northward
Departing Northward 📜 Departing northward to honor kinship and quiet. The trilogy waits, the scrolls breathe, and the continuum holds....
maldenphillips01
Aug 261 min read


Even if you don't win...
Even if you don't win Even if you don’t win in the giveaway, you may have heard the call. That quiet pull toward Waking in Sheol —it’s...
maldenphillips01
Aug 241 min read


Eve of the Spiral: Waking in Sheol Giveaway Opens Tomorrow
🌒 Eve of the Spiral: Waking in Sheol Giveaway Opens Tomorrow The spiral stirs. At first light tomorrow, the Goodreads giveaway for...
maldenphillips01
Aug 221 min read


Goodreads Giveaway: Waking in Sheol Opens Aug 23
Goodreads Giveaway: Waking in Sheol Opens Aug 23 GoldNautilus Press is offering a Goodreads giveaway for Waking in Sheol , the first...
maldenphillips01
Aug 171 min read


The Threshold of Sheol: A Spiral for the Waking
The Threshold of Sheol: A Spiral for the Waking Sheol Is Not a Brand. It Is a Descent. Waking in Sheol is a book. Yes. But it is also a...
maldenphillips01
Aug 121 min read
The Sleeper Has Awakened
I do not write for the slumbering. I write for the waking. Not the “woke,” but the ones who rise with memory in their bones. The ones who...
maldenphillips01
Aug 101 min read


Echoes from the Hearth
Date: 10 August 2025 Mood: Reverent, Kindled, Listening Echoes from the hearth Echoes from the Hearth Creativity, in my world, is not a...
maldenphillips01
Aug 101 min read


The Compass That Points South
Compass that points south The Compass That Points South Date: 9 August 2025 Mood: Reflective, Rooted, Quietly Awakened I’ve been shaping...
maldenphillips01
Aug 91 min read


Welcome to My Mythic Storytelling Journal
Welcome to My Mythic Storytelling Journal Welcome to My Mythic Storytelling Journal These are not updates. They are offerings. Threads of...
maldenphillips01
Aug 81 min read


Through Sheol, I Was Unmade. A mythic reflection on grief and transformation
Through Sheol, I Was Unmade Through Sheol, I Was Unmade “Sheol is not the end. It is the silence before the voice returns.” I did not...
maldenphillips01
Aug 81 min read
Water as a Theme
Water As a Theme As I reached for the keyboard, ready to add to my manuscript, I had an opening for the scene ready to flow from my...
maldenphillips01
Mar 143 min read
Kinship Journal
The Ongoing Telling
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