Meet Trevor
Trevor Pratt is the author of seven unpublished fantasy novels and received his first publishing deal for A Witch’s Promise (a short story) with Dragon Soul Press in 2024.
He was born in Florida, raised in California, and now resides in Utah with his family. Halfway through his college career, Trevor started and finished his first novel which had absolutely nothing to do with Civil Engineering and he liked it that way. He finished books two, three, four, and five before he finished his Master’s Thesis on High-Performance Concrete Comprising Silica Fume, which is about as interesting as it sounds, and he’s quick to tell people more about his novels than his thesis.
In addition to the engineering day-job and the other, attempted day-job of a fantasy author, Trevor spends his time lifting weights (push-pull-legs is the only acceptable split), playing beach volleyball, and baking an absurd amount of sweets with his wife. His greatest accomplishment in life is and will always be convincing the love of his life to marry him.
FAQs
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I read a lot as a kid, and enjoying stories has always been a part of my identity. But the idea to write a novel never came up until Februrary 2020, when my sister asked if I wanted to write a novel at the same time she did and we would just keep each other accountable. I agreed, and four months later my first draft of my first-ever novel was complete at 140,000 words. Ever since that first novel, I was hooked. Sure, creating a story had taken effort but more importantly it had been fun. It was only after finishing the sequel a few months later I made the decision to pursue novels as a career, and I’ve never looked back since.
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I heavily outline my novels. That initial outlining and brainstorming session usually involves an enormous whiteboard (the size you would see in a college lecture hall) and several hours of getting the thoughts out of my head and onto something I can see, and then shaping all of those thoughts into a cohesive outline over the next few weeks.
With the outline done, I aim for 1500-2000 words per day for 7-10k words a week when I’m in first draft mode. I’ve found this outlining method helps my actual writing time be more effective because I can focus on getting the story onto the page instead of wondering what the story should be.
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Truthfully, writing is more fulfilling to me than just about any other work I do. The work is its own reward, and ultimately I’m creating something I’m proud of and excited to share with people. There’s plenty of nuance in the “how to stay motivated in a creative field” but for me personally, remembering my own goals and interests is usually all I need to stay motivated and keep writing.