It's an interesting field to be in, don't you think? I mean... what makes an author? What does it take to be a good author? Am I even a good author? Am I asking too many hypothetical questions?

I want to think I am an author, and the fact that I can at least stomach my work must say something. My first release, Flower, is officially available on June 10, 2024. It took me until the day preorders were live to get comfortable with the thought of being a real author (you'd think it'd be when I, you know, started writing, but it just didn't FEEL real until it was out in the ether).  

I don't think any aspiring writer is comfortable in defining their work or their style... at least unseasoned ones like myself. It could go one of two ways:

1. A handful of people read my work and relate to my point of view, and my work is considered good.

2. It goes the opposite way, and my work is considered a 230-page doorstopper.

But this isn't just about self-deprecation. I am continuing my writing journey as long as my two middle fingers can type. As I said, Flower is out in June, and I will follow that up with I'm Talking to a Dead Man in October and Barnaby sometime in 2025. That will round out The Grief Trilogy, an anthology that explores reactions to traumatic events through unique characters, absurdity, and occasional humor. 

December 2024 will also see the release of a collection of short stories, Gumdrops, which has made me laugh out loud while writing (which either means it's funny or I'm a tremendous narcissist—the jury is still out on that one).

Anyway... you have questions (that I made up), and I have answers. Let's do this.

Brandon L Roberts is not my real name. According to my close friends and family, this was not the right decision. But I will say this: Will Ferrell's real name is John. Can you imagine calling the star of Curious George JOHN Ferrell?

It started pretty early in my life. I might have been 10. Hard to say.

Google used to have a feature called Google Pages. A friend and I hosted a page where we wrote very, very short stories inspired by the Goosebumps series. I truly wish I still had copies of this, but Google Pages went inactive a long time ago. I am very old now (I'm turning 30 in 2025).

Not too long ago, I was also an aspiring filmmaker and screenwriter. I won a string of Audience Awards for the 48 Hour Film Project, which was a lot of fun. But as we know, fun doesn't always pay the bills, so I let my creative passions fall to the side until 2023. I looked back at 2 old screenplays and realized that they could work in book form.

Grief is universal, and catharsis is very much worth our time.

I won't get too bogged down in the details, but I was one of those kids who heard 'you had to grow up so fast' a lot. My parents were sick a lot, and while they've persevered and made it to their sixties now, there was a lot of grief to experience. That does something to a person's brain chemistry.

Grief interests me because there is so much to explore. There are the 'seven stages of grief,' but I've come to recognize that they are mistakenly interpreted as linear. This interpretation leaves little room for a person's situation to be seen as unique, diluting a person's struggle to a simple 'that's just how things go' mentality. 

My first three books explore (in order) Acceptance, Anger, or Regression. I've experienced each of these at some point in my life, and as I look back on the worst times of my life, I realize I am still navigating what it means to be happy, how to forgive, how to accept forgiveness. These books are a part of that catharsis, and I hope they do the same for my readers.

If you can believe it, these books have funny moments. You'll have to trust me on that one.

This is going to require a whole different blog. Considering the fact that I wrote these questions myself, this reflects very poorly on me.

I would say that my style is grounded in reality and sweetened by absurdist elements. Simon Rich is a great example. I do this for the sole reason that life is absurd, but to lean into absurdity as a genre would go too far, at least for the stories I'm trying to tell. 

I appreciate slice-of-life works. The slice-of-life genre is the depiction of everyday life in a very specific way. If you're a fan of King of the Hill, then you're familiar with the storytelling. 

Flower is my first attempt at combining slice-of-life with absurdity. The protagonist continues to work in a sales department as his body transforms into a sunflower. Despite his transformation, he must hold a job, be a good husband and father, and navigate the healthcare system. If you've ever had a sick parent, you'll definitely relate to the protagonist's struggles. 

Every writer gets a free 600-square-foot cottage in Connecticut to write in solitude and slowly go mad. But they are not rich in anything but experience... until they are (please buy my book, I beg of you)

If I am, I have a lot of questions about why I grew up poor.