Works in Progress

Here’s a list of my current and forthcoming works in progress and where you can find out more information about each of them.

Current Projects:

“To whom it may concern”

“To whom it may concern” is an ongoing epistolary serial fiction which tells the story of Alexandra Cameron through excused absence letters from home. Readers share in Alex' triumphs and sorrows, her lessons and her longings. They share in Alex' dreams and her heartache. To whom does it concern? It concerns Alex, and it concerns you.

Readers can view previous entries here and receive future releases by subscribing to The Sword & Pen.

Academic Projects:

“Archibald MacLeish and The Revision of Promises”

“Archibald MacLeish and The Revision of Promises” is a profile of Archibald MacLeish by way of critical analysis of his poem, “America Was Promises,” which he published and later revised. MacLeish is one of the most decorated American poets, public servants, and statesmen our nation has ever produced, and yet, he’s largely forgotten to us. In this work, Aaron provides historical context to some of MacLeish’s actions and provides unique insight into the poetics of a Warrior Statesman.

As The Sword & Pen is primarily dedicated to fiction, Aaron doesn’t typically email his academic writings to subscribers, but they are always available for your review, interest, and criticism here.

Forthcoming Projects:

Hot Box

Hot Box is Aaron’s debut book, and it is being illustrated by one of the U.S. Marine Corps’ very own Combat Artists, Major Mike Reynolds. It is scheduled for publication in November by Pane Publishing Company. Hot Box offers an intimate glimpse into a day-in-the-life of enlisted Marines at war and how different it can be for junior Marines, NCO, and Staff NCOs— and yet, how much it is the same.

An unnamed junior enlisted Marine is a new arrival to camp and faces aspects of war that unnerve the bravest of men. A young NCO discovers that leading the excentric Marines under his charge, while staying out of the cross hairs of his superiors, is more difficult than teaching a bucket of worms to sing the national anthem. And a Staff NCO's letters to his family invite us into the mind, and heart, of a Korean American who is isolated by a severe language barrier and perceived as evil in carnet by his subordinates. But is he?

Readers interested in this story can find interstitials of the larger work here, and everyone is invited and encouraged to subscribe to The Sword & Pen for more bonus material and follow Aaron and Pane Publishing Company’s other social media platforms for updates on the book. All social media links are provided on the contact page, here.

“When Ashes Remain”

“When Ashes Remain” is a short story with the existential heartbeat one might expect traveling along Cormac McCarthy’s The Road.

Adams Strand is a contract welder whose moved his family for work, again, adding pressure to an already strained relationship. This time they’re in Northern California, and though he loves his wife and two children, his marriage is crumbling, and his family is falling apart. A wildfire springs up while he’s on a job and threatens to destroy everything he loves. As the world is incinerated around them and the realization of their circumstance looms, Adams must make a choice, and in doing so, he is forced to ask— and answer— the existential question, what comes after, when only ashes remain?

This story is currently making its submission rounds with multiple literary publications and writing competitions and will be available for public reading soon.