Welcome!

Hello Stupid Masses,

Welcome to Homeless Author! I'd like to congratulate you on making it this far. You've crept successfully past the social media trolls, evaded the quicksands of YouTube, eluded the insatiable Wikipedia dragon, and flown beyond the Google black hole (unless of course it's vortex is what brought you here). For those of you adventurous enough to continue down this rabbit hole, my name is Shawn McKenzie and this is my blog

Chilly day for a run up Y Mountain in Provo, UT

Although, I'm not quite convinced that "blog" is an appropriate term for what you might experience in the following posts and pages. I would consider it more of a sorting ground. An inadequate attempt to organize the ceaseless stream of random thoughts and ideas that flow through my relentlessly restless mind. The goal is turn those thought and ideas into more tangible and useful things, such as novels, screenplays, and any other form of nonsense of which my feeble little brain can conceive. Let us call it "a place of gathering" if you will.

But before we dive into this realm of utter madness, let us commence our journey with a proper introduction. I grew up in a little valley town known as Grand Junction in the colorful state of Colorado. I had goodly parents. My mother enlightened children for a living, while my father counted numbers. I thought myself pretty smart as a child. Through elementary school, I read and wrote often, knew the scientific names of every dinosaur I encountered, explored the vastness of the universe (at least among the streets of my town), and performed at the top of my class. But all that went our the door as I ventured into the troublesome realms of middle school and high school, where I quickly veered off course and became consumed by more useless things like sports, video games, girls, and a few of the other hedonistic pleasantries that life has to offer. I played soccer, basketball, and ran track. After high school, an unexpected series of life changing experiences led me down a more spiritual path. Eventually I found myself serving a two year religious mission in Salvador Brazil for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Upon returning to the United States, I attended BYU-Idaho, where after about ten changes in majors, I went on to receive a B.S. in Political Science, with an emphasis on International Relations.

One of my greatest passions in life is storytelling. I am a dreamer and I always have been, and truly believe that creativity and imagination are the most powerful tools mankind possess. I see better worlds and brighter futures, and words and stories are the means of getting there. With that being said, I'm on the long and arduous journey of writing my first fiction series, as well as a few other novels and various screenplays.

Aside from writing, I love being behind the camera. Video and photography are quite possible the most profound methods of storytelling and are among the greatest means of influencing the human minds of today. I truly believe that if we make better art, we can make a better world.

I read whenever possible. I'm the weird kid who reads while on the treadmill at the gym, while at a professional sporting event,  or even while walking the trails of a nearby lake or forest. I love to learn and seek out activities of the mind. If you don't already, I advise you to do the same. Your mind craves wisdom as the body craves food. The mind needs exercise just as the body does. Push your mental capacity to the limits. Challenge yourself and expand your boundaries. Our potential is divine. We are so much more capable of greater things than we'll ever know.

Getting outdoors and into nature should be a weekly activity at a minimum. I'm an avid hiker. From the peaceful breeze to crashing waves, every aspect of nature captivates me with unimaginable awe. Personal experience has led me to believe that nature provides the best methods of clearing the mind and healing the soul of life's many trials.

Wandering the cliffs of Oahu, Hawaii (Center by Cliff)

I hope you enjoy this "blog," wherever it may take us. As the famously coined term by Dr. Seuss goes, "Oh the places we'll go!"  It is humbling to think that while I have so much to give, the truth is that I have so much more to learn. Feel free to comment and share your wisdom. Thanks for being a part of the journey :)

ILYSM,

Shawn McKenzie