Behind the Scenes of Sylvan Druid

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How I Wrote the Final Book of the Sylvan Cycle

There comes a point in every long-running series where the story stops being about plot beats and starts being about emotional truth. For me, that moment arrived halfway through writing Sylvan Druid, the fourth and final installment in The Sylvan Cycle urban fantasy series — a book that has consumed more of my heart and mind than any novel I’ve ever written.

This installment throws everything at everyone’s favorite underdog druid, Colin McCool. The world is dying. The gods are circling. Ancient powers, older than civilized memory, are watching and waiting. And Colin has just seven days — seven impossibly short days — to complete every task and goal he set for himself in the Hellpocalypse.

When the Story Took a Hard Left Turn…

I started Sylvan Druid with one idea in mind — wrap up the Sylvan Cycle arc in a satisfying and dramatic way. What I didn’t expect was how the manuscript would evolve once I was deep into it.

About halfway through, I realized the story I was writing wasn’t the story the characters wanted to tell. Some of the emotional weight of the earlier books — the unresolved threads, the long arc of building dread and tension — began demanding more attention than the original plot had planned.

That’s when I made the hard decision to revamp the plot, shifting the narrative focus to delve deeper into the underlying themes of sacrifice, destiny, and the burdens we carry when we choose to save others.

It wasn’t just a matter of tightening chapters or reworking scenes. It was a complete reevaluation of what this book had to be. Not just another adventure, but the culmination of nearly two decades of storytelling.

Wrangling the Loose Ends of the Sylvan Cycle

Sylvan Druid isn’t a standalone. It’s the final chapter in a much larger tapestry — one that stretches back through Deadlands Druid, Fey Druid, Battle Druid, and ties even further into the sprawling Druidverse.

By the time I got to writing Sylvan Druid, there were a lot of moving pieces: foreshadowed conflicts, character arcs with long histories, magical rules that had been established years earlier, and esoteric lore that only the most dedicated readers would remember.

I knew I had to honor all of it — but I also knew that weaving all those threads into a single, satisfying narrative would require precision and patience.

Part of that process was revisiting earlier books in the series to remind myself what had been seeded, what had been hinted at, and what had been left unresolved. I made lists, tables, and piles of notes (yes, piles). Then I systematically worked to ensure that every promise made in the earlier novels had a meaningful payoff in Sylvan Druid.

That’s why rewriting the plot wasn’t just a creative whim — it was a necessity.

Persistence and Writing Through Pain

What most readers don’t see — and what I haven’t talked about much — is that this book was written under circumstances that made even ordinary days at the keyboard feel like a challenge.

Following my cancer surgery, I’ve dealt with lingering neuralgia that turns writing sessions into a physical and mental struggle. Some days, sitting down to type more than a couple of paragraphs felt like torture.

So I adapted.

Normally, my daily writing routine starts around 6:00 am with coffee, reading about the craft of writing, and reviewing what I wrote the day before. That usually culminates in a light edit, which precedes my first writing session.

Then I start writing. For years, I typically wrote in 45-minute sprints, shooting for 1,000 words per sprint. I’d do 3-4 sprints, break for a workout and lunch, then spend the afternoon editing or doing marketing and admin work.

That routine just wasn’t working anymore, so I shifted to dictating roughly 75% of my words, which has a very different cadence and texture from traditional typing. It forced me out of some old habits and into a rhythm that let the story flow when typing simply wasn’t an option.

Instead of my usual 3-4 hours of sitting at my writing desk, I started my days by typing a single scene. Then, I’d get up and pace around the house, dictating a scene at a time. Once I got two more scenes down, I’d start a light edit, then hit the treadmill and dictate another.

This was way easier on me than sitting for extended periods, hunched over a keyboard, and a lot less likely to trigger a pain episode. Which feels weird to say, considering that I was sparring 3-4 hours a week before I got sick. But life happens, and that’s okay.

In a strange way, that shift to dictation helped Sylvan Druid find a voice that was simultaneously new and familiar. Oddly enough, I’ve found that dictation helps me keep my head in the story, which offers a creative advantage that typing can’t match.

Regardless of the method, we tell stories because we have to — because some part of us won’t rest until the words are out. This book was that for me.

The Emotional Landscape of the Final Draft

Writing the final chapters was surreal.

There was sadness — because this cycle of Colin’s story has been part of my life for over a decade. Starting with Junkyard Druid back in 2016, I never imagined I’d still be writing this character’s journey ten years later.

There was elation — because the story finally worked. Plot threads that felt too tangled settled into the weave of the overarching narrative. Themes that felt too vast crystallized. And characters who’d haunted my imagination for years finally spoke their truth in a way that was honest and complete.

And above all, there was a profound sense of accomplishment — not just in finishing a book, but in honoring the emotional journey that led me there.

Early Reader Feedback

The early reader feedback has been very positive. Other than a few minor complaints about the breakneck pace of the plot (hey, I had a lot to fit in), and my penchant for $5 words, my ARC readers had plenty of good things to say:

“Nicely done, very enjoyable!” ~Thad W., 5-star ARC reader review

“Exceptional story. The pacing was good, and the story was hard to put down.”  ~John F., 5-star ARC reader review

“This is an excellent finale to the Hellpocalypse books. It is a fast-paced and exciting story with several tear-jerking moments.” ~Bev C., 5-star ARC reader review

And in case you’re wondering, yes — this is the end of Colin’s adventures in the Hellpocalypse. But you’ll have to read the book to find out how exactly that works in the grander scheme of the overall Druidverse timeline.

Order your copy now at: https://geni.us/sylvandruid

What Comes Next

Even though Sylvan Druid closes the Sylvan Cycle story arc, it doesn’t end Colin’s story — or the Druidverse®. In fact, the book opens the door to new adventures and spin-off ideas: stories focused on Colin’s apprentices, alternate timelines, and corners of the world that haven’t yet had a chance to shine.

Some endings are beginnings in disguise.

But for now, I hope Sylvan Druid gives you the closure, catharsis, and emotional punch I set out to deliver. And if it moves you even half as much as it moved me while writing it, then it’s already succeeded.