SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT (1st Draft App)

There have been several lessons learned on this thirty-year writing journey. Many of them were hard-fought battles where it felt like the world was against me. There have also been moments where a gentle wind of encouragement filled my sails and helped set me back on my way. One of the first lessons I learned was that starting is often the most important step. Things can change along the way, but getting the ball rolling is vital.

In Spring 2023, after first trying ChatGPT, I began imagining not only what I could create next—books, graphic novels, movies, games—but also the tools I wished I had. I wondered not only how they might have helped me back in my twenties, but more importantly, how they could help me now.

Three ideas came to mind. Today, I am going to talk about one of those. 

I wouldn’t have even attempted to build an app without the emergence of AI into the public sphere. It had been brewing behind the scenes beyond my attention, while I was busy writing books and screenplays. I was used to my process. However, with AI, building an app based on my own AI writing workflow seemed like something from that very first conversation with GPT-4 that other people might like too. And not just writers, but anyone who has ever had an inclination to tell a story. 

As I kicked the idea around, I was surprised to hear so many people say that they had at least one story they’d always wanted to tell. They just never felt like they could do it or never had the time to actually write it, but the story idea was still in their head. (There’s a line often attributed to Christopher Hitchens about everyone having a book inside them. Before 2023, that might have been where many stories stayed.)

It’s 2025, and one thing hasn’t changed: we all have stories to tell. And if history is anything to go by, we always will. I’ve even toyed with writing about my own “writing years,” drawing parallels between life and the fiction I’ve put on paper. We’ll see.

Stories come in all shapes and sizes. After sharing the idea of building a writing app and listening to feedback, I decided to build it—not only to help others tell their stories, but to help me tell mine. A tool made for the part I value most: the first draft. 

I love walking and hiking, letting my mind wander. I used to only carry a small notebook in my pocket to capture fledgling ideas; eventually, I started recording voice notes on my phone. Now being able to converse with an AI assistant that’s guided to stay focused on your story feels like the next level of the creative process—capturing ideas quickly, then shaping them without losing momentum.

1st Draft is a simple, writing-first app that helps you get that initial draft down—whether you need a gentle push to start or a nudge to finish. It’s designed to keep you in the story—no wandering, no research rabbit holes. The first draft is where energy lives, where discovery happens, where worlds take shape. This app is built to keep you in that space and on track.

Two weeks from today—Monday, September 29, 2025—I’ll release 1st Draft. I’ll share a little more here as we get closer. Thanks for following along.