MathiasCavanaugh.com

Who is Mathias Cavanaugh?

I am a writer. I have been writing for years and I am attempting to go back to my first love which is writing fantasy and science fiction. It is hard! I am the father of 5 children, married to my wonderful wife, and have a very full schedule of family related activities to attend as well as a full-time professional career outside of writing.

But I manage to find time to write and I hope that you’ll enjoy the stories that I publish.

Is Mathias Cavanaugh your real name?

“Mathias Cavanaugh”, I freely admit, is a pen name that I am going to use in my pursuit of getting my fantasy and science fiction. Why use a pen name? Well, my real name is very common. If I used my real name I would be easily lost in a sea of other like named individuals on the internet. Call it a marketing gimmick if you like. Hate me for it too if you so chose. I don’t care. Lots of famous people have used and do still today use pen names and stage names to help promote their careers.

What is the purpose of this site?

I have never had any of my fantasy/science fiction writing published. This site is being set up to chronicle my experiences trying to get published, to ramble on about the process of creating and my love for writing fantasy and science fiction. And of course, it is for some shameless self-promotion too.

How did you get started writing?

I have been writing science fiction and fantasy for decades and since I was 18.

It started back in my formative years when my friends and I regularly played Dungeons and Dragons. As the only person who seemed capable of creating somewhat coherent story lines and plots, I was often unceremoniously declared to be the Dungeon Master and put in charge of making sure we had adventures every week.

I would often write pages and pages of notes, descriptions and stories to relate what was going to happen ahead of time to avoid having to put these things together on the spot. This sort of progressed to the point where in college I would write short stories for my own amusement and the fun of my friends. Early stories were pretty bad, but still fun to read. Over time I got better at writing, although after college work took over the majority of my time.

Now, years later, I am trying to get back to what I love to do.

Do you think you will be a successful writer?

I certainly hope so! I will be honest in that, while I do love to write, I would love even more to get paid to write. Baby’s got to eat you know.

If I did not think I had a chance of being published I would not even be trying.