I Want Aragorn

I Want Aragorn

As a Christian man and a reader of fantasy, what I want to read is so hard to find done well. I want Aragorn and Sam and Frodo. I want Faramir and Eomer and Bard as Tolkien wrote them. These characters acted as real men of sacrifice and strength yet with compassion and wisdom for the good of others. Males of protection and fortitude.

I want Sigurd slaying a dragon Fafnir and Odysseus overcoming his trials and the Gladiator who worships the true and living God.  I want The Song of Roland, Ivanhoe, and the White Horse King (Alfred the Great). I want King Arthur, The Green Knight, or Beowulf who slays Grendel with his hands. I want Fingolfin calling out Morgoth with eyes blazing and, my absolute favorite, I want Beren plucking the Silmaril from Morgoth’s crown with his love by his side.

Is that too much to ask?

What I don’t want

What don’t I want? I walk by Romantasy without a glance and pass over stories on the fun of magic. Grimdark with little beauty left to protect and hopeless nihilism waste my time. I don’t want mindless braun, though I can handle the cunning and strength of Conan. I am tired of sword wielding Amazons who cannot fail or the fun of riding a dragon.  World building is cool as long as it is just a background for noble characters. I flip past pages of amoral sexual encounters and the darkness of glorified gore turns my stomach.

I Want Men of Character

I want Aragorn. I want MEN striving to protect the innocent, self-sacrificing, and brave. I want men facing the darkness and preserving the beauty (both of the land and of the maidens). Men who know what is morally good and what is evil and though they fail, they work to do what is right and feel shame at their failure.

I want Joshua and Caleb and David with all there shortcomings. Most of all, I want the gospel of Christ told over and over again. He is the One who comes as the true Man and true Champion that outwits His challengers, overcomes the dragon, conquers all His enemies, rescues the maiden, covers her shame, and makes her His bride. The One who, after defeating all that is wrong, presents His Kingdom to His Father. The One who is truly worthy to rule as Kings of Kings and Lord of Lords. The One who saved me and adopted me even in my failures and sins.

I am asking too much? Am I out of touch and old fashioned for wanting overdone, tired tropes?

Confirm my foolishness, but I do not care.

Join My Quest

I think there are enough men who want what I want. We want men of character and wit, men whose spiritual strength is even greater than their impressive martial skill and physical prowess.

I do not claim to have enough skill to write such soul moving epics, but I am doing my best. I am not such a man as those described above, but I want to be. I want to read about them and admire them and follow them. All of these things is what I try to make my stories, such as the Ranger’s Calling series, to be. If that is what you are looking for, tag along with me. If you know of such stories, tell me, for they are hard to find.

Thanks for listening.

If you wish to learn more about my writing, sign up for my newsletter and download a free short story.

Look for my upcoming novel release Ranger’s Calling: The Towers of Renweard

Tales of Timeless Values

I prefer noblebright or nobledark stories. Stories of hope and triumph. Good overcoming evil. Darkness may be victorious for a season, even a long season, but it fails in the end. Evil cannot last because it destroys itself. Greed, selfishness, envy, gluttony are all self-destructive. Those that stand for justice always will arise, even when the odds seem overwhelming. We want genuine heroes. Men and women who sacrifice it all for others, who stand in bravery even when all seems lost or hopeless. Stories of justice, truth, beauty, and integrity. These are the stories we love. Stories that glorify God and His nature. They are timeless and these are the stories I write. If you enjoy epic fantasy adventure with timeless values, try my stories. Sign up for my newsletter. Let us share an adventure together!

Ranger’s Calling: The Fires of Wynchell

Book 1

Raymond Keith

Galieb N’ethilion has trained his entire life at the hidden Qoholet Abbey, preparing to become an elite ranger sage. But when eshkin raiders pour out of the Towering Peaks, burning farms and terrorizing villages, his first real mission tests everything he thought he knew. Tracking the brutal invaders through burning forests and besieged lumber camps, Galieb must overcome his inexperience, his mixed heritage, and his own doubts. With a shapeshifting beast stalking the shadows and a mysterious conspiracy unfolding, he’ll need more than skill with a bow to survive. The fires of Wynchell will either forge him into the warrior he’s meant to become, or consume him completely.