We recently connected with Ashon Ruffins and have shared our conversation below.

Ashon, appreciate you joining us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?

For most of my life, in one way or another I had a creative hobby of some sort. I develop recipes and cook which is an art in itself. However, in regards to writing, I definitely wish I would have started a little earlier in life. The process of developing entertaining stories that also carries a message to my readers that can be beneficial to them personally is rewarding. Writing is a challenging process. It’s not always fun. But if you really enjoy the process of developing stories, flawed and relatable characters, and storylines with consequences, it is a great avenue of expression. Honestly, I never knew becoming an author and starting up a small indie press was in my future.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Greetings! I’m I’m Ashon Ruffins and I’m an African American author with three lifetimes of experiences all rolled into one. By that I mean I’ve done a lot of different things from the military to being a business owner. With those experiences of love, joy, pain, suffering, and tragedy, I strive to bring the human experience to readers with every stroke of the key. I did not set out to become a writer. It chose me. And because it chose me I’ve been able to bring the Uncovered Darkness Mental Health Series to life with Descent of a Broken Man, Ascent of a Vengeful Woman and a soon to be released third book in the series.

I write stories with a diverse background but also center around African American characters. It’s more than about color. The characters I write are relatable to everyone because it centers around the human experience. The aspects of mental health, consequences of our decisions, moral ambiguity. The decision to write thought-provoking horror comes from my many life experiences and consequences of life events. Life isn’t black and white, so, neither should be the stories I write.

With that being said, the stories I write are very much horror. The fun elements of the horror genre is a benefit to telling tales of mortality with the tools of characters that go bump in the night. I enjoy every moment of it and I’m grateful to be able to bring my stories to you. When it does come to horror community, there are not that many authors of color. In the writing community in general for that matter. So, it’s really important for those that don’t have the representation needed in the publishing community to continue to get their stories out there. As a result, I started my own small indie press. With that press, I want to offer all publishing services to all writers who want the opportunity to get their voices heard. As of right now, I do some mentoring on the side with other services coming soon.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

There absolutely is a mission in mind for me and Dreadful Times Press. As an author, I want to bring interesting horror with underlying themes regarding mental health, situations that make you consider what is right and what is wrong, and what is moral. I want my readers to be conflicted with the characters, entertained, and maybe a little scared as well. After someone finishes one of my short stories or novels I want them to question things and I also want them to have a smile on their face. As an author, I couldn’t ask for more.

As a small indie press, I want to eventually be able to bring quality services involving all aspects of publishing to other authors so they can get their work out there and be proud of it. Editing, book covers, marketing, and a support system that can help make the difference in making an author successful.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Yes. I can not express how much understanding all the tools available for marketing, especially on social media platforms, are important. There are a lot of both free and pay for services. Things that will guide you with book trailers, marketing templates, virtual book tours, etc. Getting your product in front of others is the ultimate goal isn’t it? Marketing is not the area to be uninformed or apologetic. Do your research and find as many avenues as you can to get it done. I was behind the curve earlier in my publishing journey. I definitely wish I knew more early on.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.DreadfulTimesPress.com
• Instagram: @life_thru_fiction and @dreadful_times_press
• Facebook: www.facebook/DreadfulTimesPress
• Twitter: @lifethrufiction and @TimesDreadful

Image Credits
Image of Ascent of a Vengeful Woman on bookshelf taken by David Blankenship Instagram @risleydb