Building From the Bullet Hole

I've worked hard to remember and learn from my past, and I've also had to grow beyond it. The same is true, I've found, in how history shapes and affects current events; we have to remember the past while not being shackled by it. All of these have collided together for me recently - in a painful but illuminating experience in my personal life, in the ongoing COVID crisis, and in the protests, violence, and national reckoning about race that has swept America after the killing of George Floyd. Join me for a raw examination, and weaving together, of all these elements in this final episode of Season 1, and find out how and why I've decided to step up my game - to level up - in all areas of my life going forward.

Whether in a written story, the annals of history, or in life, the smallest of developments can produce immense consequences. How we respond to them often then tells the story of who we each are. In this episode, I talk with Julia Cannell, the Executive Director of Airway Sciences for Kids, a nonprofit dedicated to helping underserved children and teens discover and tell their own stories through aviation and aerospace. Julia also is a big part of my own story, as she came to my assistance at a crucial moment early in my rebuild. We talk about various elements of Krelle's Inferno, talk about several female characters in the book (including one of the greatest pilots of all time - who somehow isn't a household name), and taking responsibility for our past stories so we can write new, healthier ones in the present. What story of yours is most worth telling? It's a question worth asking...

The bullet holes we build from come in all shapes and sizes, from all sorts of sources.

In this episode, my great friend Cyra Sadowl stops in to discuss her own life rebuild from the wound of her late husband - and my close friend - Matt's sudden death. Cyra was also my chief creative consultant and initial editor on Krelle's Inferno, so our respective rebuilds wove in and around that story. We dig into that at length, discuss our favorite memories of Matt, Cyra takes us back from her darkest days to her brighter ones today, and we laugh a lot. Matt would've approved.

If you are in the middle of a season of grief, Cyra's story and writing could help you take your own Next Indicated Steps out of the darkness.

Now that you've (literally) heard Chapter One of Krelle's Inferno, take a listen as JDK answers questions about the book from Stacy Heller, his friend and a connector-extraordinaire. Learn more about where the book's title and characters originated, JDK's writing process, and hear about some of the locations readers will visit in the book.

It's a freewheeling discussion that includes everything from crashing airplane metaphors and fashion critiques to not-so-oblique references to one of JDK's favorite musicians and to a visually-challenged, pint-sized, and beloved right fielder with an overactive imagination and a massive crush on a lifeguard.

Now you GOTTA listen, right?

Hey there, all you cool cats and kittens! Grab a snack, a beverage of your choice, get comfy, and settle in to listen to the first chapter of my novel. It's like an old-time radio show, but without the campy studio-manufactured background noises and cheesy accents. Instead, it's me in my campy, ramshackle blanket-fort reading my own words! I’m so excited for you to finally meet Geren Krelle, get a sense of his character, the dilemma he faces, and the world he must confront.

Enjoy!