Writing, not just novels but short stories, flash fiction, even blog posts, has become more enjoyable to me than watching TV. More than movies. Sometimes, even more than reading.
Don’t get me wrong, I still love a good story in any form. But there’s something different about sitting down with a blank page. Something alive. It’s not passive, it’s creation. Every sentence, every scene, is something I get to build. To breathe life into.
It’s strange, isn’t it? We spend so much of our lives consuming stories, but when you start creating them, time shifts. You stop watching from the outside and begin shaping the inside, the heartbeat of the world you’re building.
And it’s not just about finishing something. It’s about the act itself, the quiet joy of shaping a world from nothing, of following a character you didn’t plan to meet, of reaching a line and thinking, Ah. That one was honest.
Writing has become my pause in the noise, a place where time disappears, yet I feel more present than anywhere else. It’s where I find myself again.
So I wonder, does anyone else feel this? Has writing ever felt more fulfilling than bingeing a series? More grounding than scrolling through a feed?
If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Because for me, writing isn’t just a pastime anymore. It’s where life slows down just enough for meaning to take shape.
Most people imagine authors as curled up in quiet rooms, sipping tea and watching the words pour effortlessly onto the page. A kind of literary tranquillity, wrapped in books and warmed by candlelight.
I wish that were true.
The reality, at least for me, is far from romantic. It’s writing between real-life responsibilities, when the house is quiet and the world finally pauses. I’ve made a decision to pursue this dream fully, working extra hours not because I love the grind, but because that income, after family needs, goes straight into editing, proofreading, and eventually publishing. I’m investing in my own story, one sacrifice at a time.
My day is a patchwork of obligations. I run a small English school in Japan, manage creative routines around work and home life, and still find time to draw maps, script lore videos, and edit chapters that feel like they’ll never end. I’m not yet published. I’m not famous. But I’m building something, page by page, post by post.
There’s a mental weight to this work that few talk about. Some days, I stare at a sentence for an hour, unsure if it even belongs. Other days, it all flows so quickly I can barely keep up. The emotional shifts are real, self-doubt, exhaustion, the nagging feeling that I should be doing something more “practical.” But then a scene clicks. A piece of world-building locks into place. And for a moment, it feels like magic again.
So why do I keep going?
Because I believe in the stories I’m telling. The Veil of Kings and Gods is more than a novel, it’s a world I’ve carried for years. The short stories of Ældorra let me explore lost myths and haunted corners I’ve only glimpsed in dreams. And my sci-fi series, still in early development, pushes me to imagine a future I can barely articulate.
I don’t know when success will come, or even what it’ll look like when it does. But I know this: I want to create worlds that feel real, dangerous, and beautiful. Worlds where characters fight for something, where gods whisper from beyond, and where the weight of time never fully lifts.
There was a moment, years ago, when I finished reading a fantasy book and set it down with that lingering ache only good stories leave behind. But this time, something different stirred. I remember thinking, I love this world… but I would have done the magic differently.
That thought, quiet but persistent, was the spark that began this journey.
A Quiet Beginning
I’ve always loved stories. I was sketching characters and scribbling in notebooks before I knew what genre even meant. For me, storytelling wasn’t about ambition. It wasn’t about publishing or platforms or careers.
It was something I did because I loved the word-building and the idea of losing myself in my fantasies.
Writing, like painting, was my calm space in a world that often felt too loud.
The Question That Wouldn’t Let Go
Years later, I read a fantasy series that changed something in me. I won’t name it, but I remember wishing that the magic system worked differently. I wanted to see a kind of magic that wasn’t spoken or shouted, but silent. What if casting spells required nothing but will and cost? What if power came from absence, not control?
That question sat with me. And over time, it grew.
It became the foundation for The Veil of Kings and Gods.
Years of Silence and Sparks
Writing this novel wasn’t quick, and it certainly wasn’t easy. Life was full, sometimes too full. Jobs, exhaustion, raising a newborn, moments of doubt. There were months where I barely touched the manuscript… and others where I couldn’t stop.
I rewrote chapters. Deleted scenes. Rethought characters. Rebuilt the entire world from scratch. But I never stopped, because the story wouldn’t let me go.
What began as a simple idea, a magician who doesn’t speak, turned into something far bigger. A world where gods have gone silent. Where prophecy falters. Where fate rewrites itself.
What This Story Truly Is
I won’t spoil too much, but here’s the heart of it:
The Veil of Kings and Gods is set in Ældorra, a fractured realm of forgotten empires and divine silence. The old god-chosen magicians are gone. The demon they once sealed away is stirring again.
At the centre is Simion, a quiet magician who doesn’t cast spells the way others do. He doesn’t speak incantations. He doesn’t crave power. But he’s the one who will break the Spiral and reshape prophecy.
There’s a prince scarred by loyalty and forbidden sexual preference.
A noble sister caught between obedience and rebellion.
Secret orders. Collapsing kingdoms. Ancient ruins that whisper truths long buried.
And above it all, the Spiral, a symbol that marks not just fate, but the collapse and rebirth of magic itself.
Why Now?
Because I stopped waiting.
For years I told myself the same things: “When life settles down… when I’ve got more time… when it’s perfect.” But none of that ever came.
So I’ve decided to start where I am.
I’m sharing this novel. I’m building this world aloud. Not because I believe I’m the next great fantasy author, but because I believe this story matters. And maybe… it will matter to someone else too.
Watch the Video
If you’d like to hear the more personal version of this journey, I recorded a video where I speak directly about why I wrote this book, how long it’s taken, and what’s still to come. You can watch it below:
Join Me
If this world sounds like something you’d like to explore, you’re in the right place.
I’ll be sharing lore, character art, short stories, and behind-the-scenes posts as I bring The Veil of Kings and Gods to life. You can follow the blog or subscribe to the YouTube channel.
This is just the beginning and I’m glad you’re here.
Simon J. Phillips 