Explore Kenneth E. Givens II's Creative Portfolio Today

Are you a fan of captivating storytelling and creative content? Look no further as we delve into the intriguing world of an up-and-coming author, Kenneth E. Givens II, who is set to launch a website showcasing his innovative portfolio.

I grew up reading to escape. I still read... a lot! Though I do not have as much time to focus on reading due to my other commitments, books and stories still play as important of a role as ever in my life today. I began writing in middle school when I spent a weekend writing a 30-page comic with my friend, who played the role of artist (I cannot draw!).

Some 20 years later, I have taken that same main character along with me through ups and downs in real life, through D&D campaigns with friends, and now into my first full length novel. I plan to have the first draft done later this Spring, and writing has been consistent since last July, but it has not always been so easy to progress through the story. Before last year, I had written and re-written the first 25 pages at least a dozen times over the previous 15 years and it never made sense. I was not mature enough to write the story I wanted to write, and honestly, I was not half the writer I needed to be in order to write it.

Over the past 5 years or so, my wife and I have attended several conventions, writing and otherwise, and it lit that same fire in me that I felt all those years ago when I was locked in my room until all hours of the morning working on that comic. JordanCon and DragonCon specifically have opened my eyes as I have been able to meet, talk to, and even share an adult beverage with some of my favorite authors. That insight led me to attend SAGA Writing Conference in July of 2024. That was the final straw, the breaking of the dam, the push I needed to sit down in front of my laptop and WRITE!

Since then, I wrote my first two short stories and submitted them for review and one of them was picked up for publication in an anthology by Bayonet Books - Deadly Flames: Dragons in Combat. I have also gotten past the hump of the first 25 pages in my debut novel - currently sitting on page 168 and about halfway finished with the first draft. I have also been blessed by a strong supporting cast of my wife and my Beta readers - a group of friends who volunteered via an open call on social media.

This is the first Blog post in a weekly series where I will talk about the ins and outs as well as the ups and downs of writing a debut novel. I will also share tidbits about myself along the way in hopes that you get to know me a little. Elsewhere on my website, you will be able to access a cache where I will post 500 words per week of my current projects - ranging from pages of my debut novel to portions of other short stories I write for anthology submissions along the way.

Thank you for stopping by, and I hope you enjoy reading my stories as much as I enjoy writing them!