Brad Torgersen's "Lights In The Deep"...Fascinating!

I first met author Brad Torgersen at Utah's first Comic Con last September. I was asked to be a panelist and so I did some research on my fellow panelist to get to know them better. Most I didn't know--I hadn't heard of them since my foray into serious writing was a fairly new pursuit.

But one name stuck out...Brad Torgersen. I read his name alongside other famous names such as: Hugo, Nebula, Campbell--names after which prestigious awards are named. As it happened when our panel came up last fall, he moderated and I got to sit by him (a little advise here--if you're on a panel, you'll become better acquainted to the person you're sitting right next to than those you don't sit next to...). During the panel, Brad made an impression, a good impression.

And so, following the Comic Con when I asked to be his Facebook Friend and he accepted, it made me feel good. I knew someone who had proven he could not only compete in the competitive world of for-profit literature, but succeed. And I knew him.

Fast forward to February of this year--another conference, another chance to rub shoulders with amazing local authors. We chatted, as did I with many of the authors at the incredibly fun LTUE Conference. It wasn't until last month's Comic Con FanX event that I really got to know Brad. 

How did I do that? I bought and read his book, Lights of the Deep from WordFire Press. The 331-page collection of his short stories that not only entertains, but allows us a glimpse of what it's like to grow as a writer. He includes comments after each story which I found fascinating, almost as much as his stories. Being a relatively new writer, I found the details informative. It was like I was sitting across a table from him and he was telling me what it was like starting out, what success feels like after putting in the hard work, and how humbled he was to have his literary heroes praise him for the stories he created.

All this, and I've hardly mentioned the short stories in the book at all. I'll just say, I was in no way disappointed, so much so, I resurrected a story I started years ago and have worked on it almost every day since I started Lights of the Deep. Brad's book is inventive, creative, thought-provoking, and inspiring. If you love the genre, pick it up! Click: HERE for the Amazon link. You won't be disappointed. Plus, you'll be reading some of the early writings of an author, I believe, will one day have many novels stocked on a bookstore or library shelf.

Thanks, Brad for allowing us to get to know you.