Adam C. Hewitt: Journey Behind the Echoes of Aethera

The world of literature is filled with stories that transport readers to different realms. I wanted to do more than just take you to a new world. I wanted to take you to a place that felt too real. I wanted to pique your interest enough to question aloud: "Does he know something none of us yet understand?" My debut novel, Bound: Echoes of Aethera, Vol. 1, was cultivated over years of experiences, including one that nearly took my life. It was this event that gave birth to a world that was designed to be fictional, but has seemingly taken a life of its own. In this blog post, I'll introduce you to the inspiration behind Bound, and the themes that resonate throughout.

The Early Years: A Foundation Formed From Fear

August of 2008, my oldest daughter was brought into this world. It was one of the happiest moments of my life. Two days later, I began having symptoms of what was later diagnosed as a life-threatening deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. That's a deep blood clot that broke off and went to my right lung. Here I was, a brand new father and I have almost no memory of my daughter in her first few months of life as I was fighting for my own. After being in the hospital for over a week, they found out I had a blood clotting disorder. 26 years old and everything I thought I knew, everything I looked forward to... it all came crashing down.

A Stranger's Advice

After being bedridden for over a month to recover, I finally returned to work. I was employed at a resort two hours south of Seattle, working as a massage therapist at their spa. I had been temporarily promoted as the spa director before my health scare but was replaced while I was out and reinstated as lead massage therapist when I got back. In November of 2008, I was giving a client a massage who was originally from the Seattle area. Near the end of the treatment, she asked me why I wasn't working in a bigger area. She felt my abilities were being wasted so far from greater opportunities and suggested I move up to the Bellevue/Seattle, Washington area where the real economy in the state was thriving. She even suggested the spa I should apply to.

I couldn't shake the feeling that I needed to look into what she suggested; so I did. I found the establishment and recognized the potential it could offer me and my family. I took the chance and applied. I was offered a job two weeks later. Not knowing if I could survive off having zero clientele, I commuted for the first two months. I was quickly made aware that the establishment had an impeccable reputation and a significantly high walk-in rate. Not only was I able to afford the move to a more expensive place to live, I would be able to thrive there.

The Unexpected Class - The Unexpected News

A few months after moving up north, I was offered an opportunity to learn an incredibly rare form of Shiatsu from a Master in the Seattle area whose was part of a 650 year lineage. I never anticipated that this class would change my career in the most amazing of ways. But before the class would start, I needed to see a new doctor about my blood clotting disorder because I wasn't going to drive two hours to my old one. I had to ask if I even could receive any treatment as my leg was still recovering from the clot and it wasn't fully dissolved. Sitting in the new doctor's room, an unexpected discovery would alter everything again.

The doctor revealed that my original doctor had misread the lab results from when I was diagnosed with my blood clotting disorder. The handwritten notes were incorrect and didn't follow the lab's findings. My old doctor had me on a collision course with a plan that would've likely seen me get another blood clot. The news, sadly, was bad. But the good news was that we found the mistake before I paid the ultimate price. I'd have to make changes to my life to adjust to the true diagnosis.

The thing is... if that woman, back at the resort, had never suggested to move up north, I would've never seen a new doctor and likely would've never known of the diagnostic mistake... until it was too late. It was as if someone saw that I was heading toward a disaster and redirected me away from it.

Hmmm... interesting concept.

Falling Into Place

When you almost die at the age of 26 from a condition that would seem more in line with someone much older than I, it can leave you frustrated. Add to the fact that my left leg's vein was permanently damaged and now I was left to wear a compression sock while I walked and worked for the rest of my life. "Why did I deserve this?" I asked myself this a lot my first handful of years post injury.

What I didn't recognize, at the time, was that everything seemed to work out really well since I had moved up north; it worked out really well since my misdiagnosis was revealed. Yes, I was now having to take medication for my disorder and wear a compression sock, but our move coincided with getting our first real tax return as parents, which paid for the move and a few months of cushion if things were slow. Then I started learning Shiatsu and not only did it transform my career, but I was able to better understand things about my clotting disorder that even the Hematologists didn't know.

Fast forward a few more years and I found myself working with the Seattle Mariners using the Shiatsu that I've come to love. I was traveling around the country working on high profile players. I also was flown to different states, like Hawaii, to introduce this rare form of Shiatsu. This one move altered my life in a way that never would've happened if it wasn't for the suggestion of a stranger. How crazy is it that one nudge in a different direction can dramatically change one's life.

That's when the idea of Bound, Echoes of Aethera, crawled into my mind and made a comfy little nest for all eternity.

The Heart of the Story

The premise was realitively simple:

What if entities that we could not see lived among us? They are tied to us in some fashion and guide us around the pitfalls that lurk in the shadows, patiently waiting for us to stumble upon it.

It wasn't an uncommon concept, by any stretch. Many religions believe in Angels of some kind. I've grown up in very strict areas when it came to religion. My family was always incredibly tolerant of others' religious beliefs; that's never changed nor will it ever. But I haven't always been the most religious. More spiritual, one would say. So the idea of a guardian that could see into my future and intervene when needed was less about religion and more about preserving prosperity for the individual they shadowed.

Over the next few years, after this idea came to pass, I formulated a few fun chapters with this concept in mind. I always loved writing but was never properly trained. In fact I hated English class in high school; I never could use semicolons correctly. But storytelling was something I truly enjoyed doing. Even when I was barely a teenager, I toyed around with a story about a boys soccer team heading to Brazil to play in a tournament then crash land in the Amazon jungle. If my memory serves me correct, it was predominantly dialog.

And while I was excited about this idea, the story nearly took a nosedive forever when I found out a movie, based on a 1950's science-fiction short story, sounded incredibly familiar with my own concept. I was so disappointed that I deleted my seven chapters and moved on. For a few years, I toyed with writing an epic fantasy instead; I still enjoyed storytelling. No matter what I did, I just couldn't shake the idea of my story. It had grown some serious legs and I loved writing it so much. Ultimately, I decided that the movie and old short story most definitely had some similarities, but it wasn't the exact same by any stretch of the imagination. I chose to go forward with writing Bound, refusing to look back or compare myself to what had already been produced.

Protagonists and Antagonists

I don't know what it is about tragedy, but it always brings out the true nature of characters, both good and bad. As I developed the story based around the unseen entities of an unseen world, Annika was born. I had a very clear image of what this protagonist would look like and how she'd act. Over the years, she's changed very little.

Her ethereal guardian, Alexander, hasn't changed a whole lot either. But as I write, he does continue to surprise me. My plans for the antagonist have had its ups and downs. I've been inspired by a few very popular writers and movie directors that, while I won't name names and potentially give up important details of my book, have helped me to define my writing style in a way that has me excited to talk about what I have in store for my readers.

What a Ride

Bound, as well as the other three books in the continuum that will be released, is meant to take the reader on a rollercoaster of emotions. Life is filled with them. I want the reader to love, hate, pity, and despise my characters in more ways than they knew was possible. I want them to look inside themselves and ask, "What would I do if I was Annika?" or "What would I do if I was Alexander?" During some of the most intense moments in each of these books, my readers will wonder, "Is he really going to take us there?" The answer: "You sure as hell bet I am!" Life doesn't pull its punches very often. Why should I?

You won't see what I have in store for you coming. You won't be able to put down the book, but if you're forced to, you won't be able to get it out of your head. You'll wrestle continuously with the wonder, "What does Adam have planned?"

The Writing Process: From Concept to Completion

This journey has been fascinating. I never thought I'd love writing as much as I have. I've also learned a ridiculous amount of information to go along with a nasty case of imposter syndrome. I've read and listened to other authors who struggle with the same nasty little voice in their head. Apparently the great Stephen King also goes through it still to this day. I can't fathom that being true.

I am continuously working on being a better writer. I see my book cinematically. Apparently, from what my beta readers have mentioned, this has helped transform the story into what they've really enjoyed. For me, the real challenge will be to translate what I see more eloquently onto the page for all of you to read. I wish you could see this story the way I do. I am trying my hardest to make that a reality.

Outlining and Drafting

For years I just wrote. I sat down, turned my computer on, put on some music, and just let my creativity take over. I honestly love writing that way. Outlining has been something I've added as of late, but I still enjoy just writing.

The drafting process has been crazy, to be honest. I was ignorant to think that I was done with my book, barring a significant amount of line editing, when I sent my manuscript to beta readers to "do their worst". The ones who read it liked it but had some great insight on some weaknesses I had. I totally expected there'd be some changes needed to be made. I didn't realize that your first draft is never even close to the draft that will end up being your final one.

After multiple creative edits, I'm happy to say that my story has gone to new levels that I never would've dreamed I'd see in the early days of this journey. Now, to this day, I await the professional opinion of a talented woman who's worked in Hollywood for 30 years. She's giving my manuscript a comprehensive review. Once she's done, we'll see where I am at with this first book. Boy... I am ready to get it out there! But it needs to be properly complete; this I have come to fully understand and respect.

The Publishing Journey

Initially I queried agents in hopes that my story would "WOW" them. Sad to say, I sent them my first draft. (I'm laughing as I write this.) No wonder the 15 letters I sent got me nowhere. I was told to do 500-plus agent letters and told myself at the beginning that I didn't get traction likely because I only sent 15 letters out. That might be partially true, but the truth is, my latest version of this story blows the first draft out of the water. My first draft wasn't ready to be read, not at least by an agent.

Traditional vs. Self-Publishing

I've decided to be an independent publisher. This will allow me to build up my "Echoes", the cute name I've decided to give those who join my newsletter and spreads the word about my continuum. Independent publishing might not be as lucrative as quickly as a traditionally published novel, but it sure looks to be a lot more fun, at least at first. Of course I wouldn't mind if I end up being traditionally published down the line. But I'm not crying if it doesn't happen immediately or any time soon.

Marketing and Promotion

The first big marketing and promotion that I'll be doing is heading to the Dark Fantasy Renaissance Faire in Monroe, Washington in the summer of 2026. My youngest daughter wanted to go to this, similar to the Woodland Realm Faire we went to the year before. I realized this fair had a great chance to allow me to promote Bound: Echoes of Aethera, Vol. 1 early. So my wife and I will be dressing up in character and passing out trinkets and character cards to the patrons of the fair. Should be a lot of fun!

Building an Author Brand

I wanted the Echoes of Aethera to be a brand that could stand the test of time. It'll be a 4-part continuum that I hope has legs to do a lot of great things in the future. Like I said, I see this story cinematically. I can honestly envision it as a movie or television series.

One of my Shiatsu clients heard about my story during one of our sessions and loved it so much that she insisted that I finish the book. She, herself, is an author and creative editor. She looked almost as excited as I do when talking about the story. I gave her an insight on everything that I was planning. Her words have inspired me to really push this story out, probably more than anything else.

Building a Community of Fans

If I can get fans of this book together to create a community of Echoes who enjoy talking about the book, I think that would be the greatest compliment I could ever achieve. I'd love to hear about people discussing what they felt was going to happen next with each book. They'd be wrong (haha), but it'd be fun to hear their theories.

Looking Ahead: Future Projects

The first draft of the second book is nearly completed, but I'm going to be honest with you... it's going to be heavily rewritten. I originally wrote 250k words and thought that that would be a great first debut. As my father, L.W. Hewitt, a historical fiction author, informed me, "that is way too long!" So instead of sulking in sadness, I realized I didn't write one book, I wrote two. So I split the manuscript up, cleaned the first book quite a bit, then added new chapters to give proper context and depth. The second book will need some serious work, but the foundation is still there. The big parts, the kinds that left me crying as I wrote it, are still very intact. They've even grown quite a bit since I'd put it off to the side to focus only on book 1.

I'm super excited to introduce my second book, Evanesce, to the world when it is ready. If you finish the second book... you're mine forever. I guarantee it!

Final Thoughts

There are so many things going through my mind as I write this first blog. Honestly, I am learning all of this as I go. I have enjoyed this journey so much and can't wait to see where it ultimately takes me.

I'm not perfect. I'm working on being the best author that I can be. I've learned that this art, like all skills worth learning, take time and discipline to improve. If you put the work in, the sky's the limit. Most importantly, I am writing for myself first and foremost. I won't convince the world my book is worth their time, but I'm happy to converse with anyone who did like or even love my story. If you did enjoy it, hit me up some day and let's chat about it!

Thank you for learning a little about who I am and why I wrote Bound: Echoes of Aethera, Vol. 1. I've got more great blog ideas lined up and will be happy to continue to share them all.