Worldbuilding is one of the most time consuming but fun things that I get to do when creating books.  Before I switched to contemporary fiction, I wrote historical fiction and a lot of the settings were already sketched out for me.

These days, I'm just going buck wild coming up with settings to give Madison flavor.  As a writer, of course, I have to have a bookstore in town.  I've had lots of places to draw inspiration from.  Having lived in Austin for four years, I have a great example of how Texas does independent bookstores.  

I also went to The University of Mississippi, and for my English classes, we got our "textbooks" at Square Books.  It's an understatement to say that I've got some experience wandering the aisles. 

So when I got the opportunity to create my own independent bookstore in Madison, TX, I jumped at the chance.  For the Saving Madison series, each book is less than 20,000 words less, so I had to pretty much stick with the community center as the main setting.  

For the Preserving Madison series, however, the books got longer, and I was able to expand my world.  If you're reading this during the summer of 2025, Dillo Libros is "Coming Soon."  By Spring 2025, however, you'll have a chance to stop by.  Spend some time talking to the staff, buy a book, and head over to the cafe for a coffee.