MJ BLACKSTON

   I've always been a writer. I remember folding pieces of paper in fours so I could write a story on the inside and decorate the "cover page" when I was probably no more than 5 or 6 years old.  I started my first "novel" in fifth grade. It was called, The Eyes Of Janet Malone, and as one would expect, I got about three pages into it before I got bored and forgot about it.

   I spent most of my life starting new stories and some even progressed pretty far, but most never made it to completion and so I have a treasure trove of ideas to chose from, not to mention new tales and plot lines that interrupt my daily routine on a frequent basis. I finally figured out how to be disciplined enough to wrangle all the ideas swimming around in the murky - sometimes dark, sometimes comically insane - pond that sloshes between my ears and finish the projects I've started before I fish out a new one. I owe that to a dear friend who, after asking permission to perform a scene from a play I'd told him I'd been writing for twenty years, then learning I'd not penned the first line, informed me that I was not writing anything. I was talking about writing something. It was the kick in the pants I needed to immediately go out and buy a new pen and a fresh notebook. Six months later, I had the final draft of, Mr. Long Said Nothing, and I haven't looked back.

   I don't know if I'm any good or not - that's for you to decide. All I can tell you is that I love to write. God, I love to write! Since I completed my play and was blessed to be able to produce and direct a six show run to great reviews, I've written a second play, Friends Like You, completed the novel version of, Mr. Long Said Nothing, and am currently writing a supernatural thriller - Shoeshine Drop - that can be read free on this site.

   I'm a professional artist to pay the bills - you can view my work at www.blackstonarts.com - and I have a podcast about life and the messiness of it, which you can listen to free at www.funnymessy.com. A YouTube channel and podcast with my son is also in the works, called Bullet & Bard.