I usually include content warnings at the beginning of a given book, but in general, here’s what you can expect from my work:
- Gender & ethnic representation: I try to create settings of multicultural egalitarianism, where everyone has a voice and contributes toward a common goal. You will usually find ensemble casts with an effort toward gender balance and ethnic representation. The same goes for neurodivergent characters. This will vary according to the needs of the respective story, but it’s something I’m always mindful of.
- LGBTQ+ representation: As the parent of a trans daughter (and hopefully an ally), I endeavor to include non-cishet characters in my settings, not merely to “check a box”, but to accurately reflect the world around us and create more inclusive stories. Of course, with the lived experience of a cishet white dude, my work may not provide detailed focus on the unique experiences of LGBTQ+ characters. But at the very least I try to normalize their presence in a given setting.
- Sexual content: Most of my work is what I would consider 13+ in terms of adult content (the equivalent of a PG or PG-13 movie rating, or T videogame rating), with a few rare exceptions*. This means that, while romance might be a subplot, any sexual activity is generally fade-to-black and/or referenced “offscreen”. I have no problem with sexual content in books, but it’s not generally what I write.
*Sakuru, for example, has a more mature “R-rated” approach to both sex and violence.
- Volence & horror: I predominantly write from a classic pulp formula, with an emphasis on action, and therefore my work contains varying degrees of “comic book violence”. With a few exceptions, I keep things to the equivalent of a PG-13 level of gore. I generally steer clear of body horror and explicit torture.
- Moral compass: For my pulp adventure and sci-fi titles, you will see a focus on good overcoming evil and the value of found family. Fascists and authoritarians are always villains. But even within the pulp milieu, I strive to give the most cartoonishly-evil antagonist some dimension and reason for being who they are (same for the heroes). I do write some supernatural horror (see The Parish), but any religious references do not reflect my personal belief system.