As I’ve been working on editing Moon of the Huntress, I’ve been thinking a lot about when this book really started. Did it start with the idea or did it start at the first word?

I guess it really began in late January 2016 (maybe a little earlier). I had just moved out to Seattle and made some friends, but we were looking for something to do. And, I’m not ashamed to admit it; I suggested we start playing a game every week to keep our friendship together. Yes, I recommended we try to play Dungeons & Dragons.

For those of you who have been encased in glass for 30 or so years, Dungeons and Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules with Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. It comes with a basic set of rules that define the world and gameplay, but the players, the Game Master and the chance of dice rolls decide the end action. If you haven’t had any chance to play, I highly recommend it. Failing that, there’s lots of podcasts/videos on Youtube of other people playing which can be very funny and enjoyable. A couple I can think of off the top of my head include Critical Role (Geek and Sundry Youtube) or The Adventure Zone (Maximum Fun Podcasts).

But, back to Moon of the Huntress. This particular game of Dungeons and Dragons was started in late January or early February (historians can dispute this in the future). Our first official game was to create our characters and establish the world a bit. One thing I wanted to do for the game was to give everyone a ‘secret’ assignment, a reason why they were on the road that the other players didn’t know yet. My friend Kate chose to play as an elf ranger named Eryn, who was on the road looking for her sister. I started thinking about where her sister was and where that road would lead. And then, I had an idea.

Sadly, our group fell apart (fun fact: D&D actually stands for Distance & Duration, the true enemies of any long-term campaign). We still hang out frequently, but I was left with a stack of notes, a collection of characters and a few ideas rattling around in my head. With Kate’s permission, I decided to write out her story myself, adding characters from the campaign along the way. And so, on April 28th (if my hard drive is to be believed), I started writing.

Now, here we are. Depending on how you look at it, we’re either over a year or almost at one year from when we first started playing. Now, I’m in what I like to imagine is my final draft and starting to present my work to agents. I don’t know where this road will lead, but I’m happy to ride it for as long as it goes.

What’s your favorite story origin? Is it Stephen King’s Carrie? J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter?  Let me know below!