Introducing Valeria: The Vault of Secrets

 I have another book out in the world!

Valeria: The Vault of Secrets is now available as an ebook for $2.99, and this one is another trip into my back catalog. You can find it here: https://tinyurl.com/bdcnxf42

I actually wrote Valeria about seven years ago.

And then... I left it sitting on my hard drive. 😂

Apparently, I'm doing a little spring cleaning. Except it's August, and my “old files” are measured in years.

I recently released another book that had been sitting around for 13–15 years, so this is becoming something of a trend. Maybe I should keep digging through those old hard drives and see what else I find.

A Middle-Grade Science-Fantasy Adventure

The story follows thirteen-year-old Myrdra Grizwold, a history buff living on one of the moons of the vast Valerian Empire.

When a ruthless political candidate begins making his bid for power, Myrdra discovers a disturbing secret from his past. Her attempt to expose him soon leads her into a much larger mystery involving the ancient history of the empire—and questions that have remained unanswered for centuries.

A thousand years earlier, the infamous ruler Zaroth Kurwahl attempted to destroy the Valerian Empire with an army of gigantic machines. Although his attack was eventually stopped, the mystery surrounding what caused him to turn against the empire has never truly been solved.

Now Myrdra is about to discover that some secrets are better left buried.

Valeria: The Vault of Secrets combines science fiction, fantasy, mystery, adventure, political intrigue, and a young heroine determined to uncover the truth.

Why Release It Now?

Honestly, part of the reason is simply that I got tired of having books sitting around that nobody could read.

I've written quite a few stories over the years, and not every manuscript immediately becomes a major project. Sometimes a book gets finished, gets put away, and then life moves on.

That's basically what happened with Valeria.

Seven years later, I decided it deserved a chance to actually exist outside my hard drive.

So here it is.

If you're a fan of middle-grade science fiction, fantasy, mysteries, or adventure stories—or if you know a young reader who is—I'd love for you to check it out.

VALERIA: THE VAULT OF SECRETS

Available now as an ebook for $2.99.

One more old manuscript has officially escaped the hard drive. 😂

Amazon link: https://tinyurl.com/bdcnxf42

#Valeria #TheVaultOfSecrets #MiddleGrade #ScienceFantasy #NewBook #IndieAuthor

 

The Wasteland Child Is Finally Out in the World

After roughly 13–15 years, I’ve finally released The Wasteland Child, a science-fiction/fantasy adventure novel I originally began working on while earning my MFA in Writing Popular Fiction.

It’s a little strange—and honestly pretty satisfying—to finally see this book available to readers after all this time.

A Story That Took a Long Time to Get Here

The Wasteland Child takes place in the lush jungles of Amnar, where every child possesses the ability to control beasts with their minds.

Every child except Dwyth.

Branded “The Ungifted One,” Dwyth is treated as a disappointment by his village and expects to spend his life doing small, meaningless work.

Then he discovers that the parents who raised him aren't his real parents.

Even more shocking, he learns that he originally came from the deadly Wasteland beyond the jungle.

Determined to uncover the truth about his past, Dwyth runs away from the only home he's ever known and enters a world controlled by the Metrodites—humans of steel and circuitry who have long been enemies of his people.

There, he meets Zarana, a mysterious girl hiding a secret of her own.

Dwyth was born without psychic power.

Zarana was born with it—but is forbidden to use it.

Their meeting forces both of them to question what they've been taught about power, humanity, and the supposedly unbreakable divide between their two worlds.

Why Release It Now?

This book has been sitting around for a long time.

I first worked on The Wasteland Child while I was getting my MFA, roughly 13–15 years ago. Like a lot of creative projects, it went through various stages of development, got put aside, and eventually became one of those books that I wasn't quite sure I'd ever actually release.

But I've continued writing and making things over the years, and eventually I figured: why not?

It's a story I spent a lot of time on, and I'd rather finally put it out into the world than have it sit on a hard drive forever.

So that's what I'm doing.

It's not accompanied by a huge marketing campaign or a fancy publishing rollout. It's simply an ebook, available for $4.99, and after all these years, The Wasteland Child is finally out there.

If you've read any of my other books, I'd love for you to give this one a shot—and if you're discovering my work for the first time, welcome.

The Wasteland Child is available now.

https://tinyurl.com/2jej3syc

NEW RELEASE: “Don’t Open After Sunset” (Short Horror Film)

I’m excited to share my latest short horror film, Don’t Open After Sunset, now officially available to watch on my YouTube channel.

This is a found-footage horror short set in a remote cabin where a simple weekend of solitude quickly turns into something far more unsettling. The story follows a man who arrives expecting a quiet digital detox, only to discover a warning left behind: Don’t Open After Sunset. What follows is a slow escalation of strange sounds, unexplained disturbances, and something that refuses to stay outside.

This project is very much a DIY, solo-made film—written, filmed, and edited by me—and continues my exploration of minimalist horror storytelling. I’ve always been drawn to tension built through atmosphere, sound design, and restraint rather than constant jump scares, and this film is an extension of that approach.

Found-footage is a format I keep returning to because of how intimate it feels. It places the viewer directly inside the experience, blurring the line between fiction and something that feels discovered rather than created.

If you enjoy slow-burn horror, eerie sound design, and unsettling endings that linger after the screen goes dark, I hope you’ll check it out.

You can watch it here: https://youtu.be/QWf2BCo3kF8

Thanks for watching and for all the support—it genuinely means a lot as I continue building these independent projects.

— Chris

The Lake That Contains Water – A Short Film

I recently finished a short film titled The Lake That Contains Water, a found-footage mockumentary centered around a character named Daniel Mercer and his attempt to document the existence of a lake monster.

This project really started with the character.

Daniel is someone who approaches everything with total certainty. He has a clear framework for how the world works, and once that framework is in place, everything he observes fits neatly into it—whether it should or not.

The film follows his process over a series of days as he gathers what he believes to be meaningful evidence. The structure is simple, but it allowed me to focus on consistency—how he speaks, how he reacts, and how confidently he draws conclusions from very little.

I was especially interested in how far that confidence could carry the film on its own.

It’s a small, contained project—one character, one location—but very deliberate in how it builds that perspective over time.

The film runs around 5 minutes and is now up on YouTube: https://youtu.be/jrvXmzEOBJg

If you watch it, I’d be interested in what you think of the character and whether his perspective holds together throughout.

New Book Release: How We Destroyed the Elven King’s Three Fiery Rings of Doom

I’m excited to announce the release of my newest middle-grade fantasy comedy adventure ebook, How We Destroyed the Elven King’s Three Fiery Rings of Doom, currently for only 99 cents!

The story begins with three best friends—Ben, Joe, and Dana—checking out Joe’s supposedly magical wardrobe. Instead of dust bunnies, they find something much worse: a portal that pulls them into a completely chaotic fantasy world.

Once there, things go downhill quickly.

They encounter a dragon who quotes The Wizard of Oz, a permanently irritated faum (which is definitely not a faun), and a wizard who insists on eating sweet-and-sour chicken while casting spells. And presiding over the whole mess is a villainous Elven King who possesses three fiery rings capable of destroying everything.

Unfortunately for Ben, Joe, and Dana, the only way home is to destroy those rings first.

This book is written as a fast-paced, humorous fantasy adventure for middle-grade readers who enjoy portal stories and fantasy parodies. If you enjoy classic portal fantasies like The Chronicles of Narnia, as well as modern middle-grade adventures like Fablehaven and The Land of Stories, this story might be right up your alley.

The book also features characters from my earlier story How We Became Intergalactic Superheroes, though it’s designed so new readers can jump in without reading that one first.

If you'd like to learn more or grab a copy, the book is now available on Amazon here:  https://tinyurl.com/2epd8mcs

Thanks for reading—and if you ever encounter a magical wardrobe that burps, you might want to think twice before climbing inside. 🚪🔥

It Waits at the Lodge Passes 1,000 Hours of Watch Time on YouTube

My solo found-footage horror film It Waits at the Lodge recently crossed a milestone: 1,000 hours of watch time on YouTube since its release on December 15, 2025.

For those unfamiliar with the project, It Waits at the Lodge is a 40-minute horror film that I filmed and edited entirely myself. The story follows a man staying alone at a quiet lodge who begins to experience strange disturbances—subtle at first, but gradually escalating into something much more disturbing.

Creating the film was an interesting creative experiment for me. Most people know my work through my books, particularly the Between Dark and Light series, but I’ve always enjoyed exploring storytelling in different formats. Found-footage horror seemed like the perfect format for a small, one-person production.

What’s been especially fun since releasing the film is seeing people discover it and share their reactions in the comments. Some viewers have found it unsettling, some have had questions about what exactly is happening, and others have shared their own interpretations of the story.

Reaching 1,000 hours of watch time means that audiences have collectively spent more than 41 full days watching the film, which is a pretty cool milestone for an independent project.

If you’d like to watch It Waits at the Lodge, you can check it out here:

https://youtu.be/cISCaaHyL6I

Second Festival Selection for OMG, You’re, Like, Totally Haunted!

I’m excited to share that my 4.5-minute found-footage comedy short, OMG, You’re, Like, Totally Haunted!, has been officially selected by the Austin Micro Film Festival!

The festival screens at Southwest Theatres Lake Creek 7 in Austin, and this marks the film’s second festival selection, following its earlier recognition at Indie Short Fest in Los Angeles.

The short follows a shy man who moves into a new apartment and begins documenting what he believes is paranormal activity — creaking doors, cold spots, faint giggles — only to discover he may be sharing the space with the ghost of a seventeen-year-old valley girl who gradually starts influencing his personality in increasingly pink and pumpkin-spice directions.

The film was shot on a $90 camera and leans into the sincerity of found-footage horror before slowly unraveling into absurd character comedy. What started as a small creative experiment has now resonated with two separate festival programming teams — which is a reminder that algorithms and curators don’t always respond to the same signals.

While the short has had modest traction online, I’m grateful to see it finding life in theatrical settings and festival programs.

You can watch OMG, You’re, Like, Totally Haunted! here: https://youtu.be/s727sbAEofo

More to come.