In my fiction writing class this semester, we were assigned to create bios exactly 350 words long. The biggest challenge was to include everything I wanted while keeping the flow of the piece--every time I removed or added something, it became choppy or bulbous, like a list of bullet-point info.
It's been awhile since I've updated this blog, so I thought I'd post it. Hope you enjoy!
Luke A. Wildman is a writer, fantasy
novelist, and all-around weirdo. He wants his writing to resemble glass—clear
and sharp—but it’s usually more like vomit. See, Luke is a Christian, but
believes the African god Mbombo created our world when he puked out the sun,
moon, and stars. Then Mbombo’s three sons tidied the mess and finished the work
of creation, like a troupe of devoted editors.
Luke is not the African god
Mbombo—despite having never been photographed with him—but his writing is
usually messy and requires obsessive editing before it’s reader-worthy. Luke
and Mbombo have Africa in common: Luke was born in Liberia during a civil war and
reared in Nigeria amidst terrorism and religious conflicts. He misses the Nigerian
people and food. Oh, and his parents. Them too.
You probably shouldn’t trust his
growing-up stories, which are muddled with scenes from Tolkien, Lewis, Baroness
Orczy, Robert Jordan, Neil Gaiman, Patrick Rothfuss, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle,
James Herriot, and countless others. Please don’t ask for one favorite author—Luke
has a love/hate relationship with that question—but he’d love to hear about
some of yours. Why don’t you chat with him over drinks? In conversation, he’s
socially awkward—but, frankly my dear, he no longer gives a damn.
Luke got to study in Yorkshire,
U.K., during college, and brags about it frequently. That’s the same area where
Dracula sucked Lucy’s blood and James Herriot tramped around the Dales as a
veterinary surgeon. Luke has a terrible sense of direction, and wandered lost
for hours through ruins and tangled alleyways in the ghost-gray rain. He adored
every minute.
Looking for him now? He currently
studies Professional Writing at Taylor University, in the cornfields of
Indiana. Indiana sunsets are gorgeous, and the people here are warm and
hardworking. You should visit.
You might enjoy Luke’s published
works, which include short stories and more. In 2014 Brimstone Fiction gave his
unpublished fantasy manuscript an Editor’s Choice Award. In 2015 he received
first place in a student creative writing contest.
Feel free to peruse his poorly
updated blog: lukelawwildman.blogspot.com.
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| Here is a picture of me and some friends pretending to be vikings in Valhalla. No real reason for it--I just like it. |
