Greetings and Salutations!

Congratulations, weary Internet traveller. You have just encountered a little piece of the web that I call home. Do come in, won't you? Put up your feet and rest.

It's good to meet you! My name is Josiah . . . but that was probably a little obvious. Welcome to my humble blog, The Steadfast Pen. I'm glad you stopped by. Fact is, I hope you stop by a lot more in the future.

To start off, let's get to know each other a little better. Here's a list of ten things you should know about me, because I like lists. And no, that one doesn't count.

1. I love stories. Because of my love for stories, I'm a writer and, by nature, a reader. See, what I've found is that not all readers are writers, but writers tend to be readers. They need to replenish their creative juices now and again, and I'm no different. I love becoming so engrossed in a good book that I lose track of time. But it doesn't stop there. I want to return the favor by giving others stories that they'll absolutely love, which is a major reason why I write.
2. I was homeschooled. No, I'm not one of those awkward, socially inept homeschool students. I can hold a conversation with the best of them. Well, maybe not quite, but close enough. I was in public school for kindergarten and driver's ed. I actually graduated from a one-year college class this spring, so there's that too for my "normal" school exposure.
3. I have three sisters. People seem to be really surprised when they find out I don't have any brothers. They seem to think it's tough to survive in a home with so many females. Actually, they should be jealous of me. It gives me the advantage, because I can learn how to interact with the opposite gender. Plus, they're an incredible blessing to me, so it all works out in the end.
4. I am the last of my siblings to start a blog. Yep, all three of my sisters have their own blogs. I finally decided to join the club this year. My oldest sister blogs about a variety of things, with writing and life in general being the most common topics. You can find her here. My middle sister likes to post about the art she draws and the books she reads. Check her out here. Last, but not least, my youngest sister posts about an online game she plays (Animal Jam) and is also writing a story about her and her friends in a high school. You'll catch her right here. (No, my sisters didn't bribe me so that I could advertise their blogs. This was all my doing.)
5. I'm a gamer. Quick, erase the image of a forty-year-old, foul-mouthed, bachelor living in his parents's basement, surviving on Cheetos and shrinking away from the outdoors. It's a stereotype that I do not conform to, save for that fact that I'm a bachelor. I thoroughly enjoy playing video games, both by myself and with my youngest two sisters. I generally prefer family-friendly games, of which Nintendo has plenty. Shameless advertising for you there, Nintendo!
6. I'm a LEGO fanatic. No one will ever be able to convince me that LEGO is a toy for kids only. It's ageless, and anyone can enjoy it. My LEGO collection consists of several boxes filled with an assortment of vehicles, animals, and what-have-you. I've got four boxes for minifigures, and I share a closet with my sisters to store bigger models. Plus, I've got a shelf or two on an old bookself, since the closet isn't big enough. Think I have enough yet? . . . Nah!
7. My favorite music to listen to is soundtrack music. This collection rivals my LEGO; I own over fifty albums, if I'm not mistaken. Some people think this is really odd, but I love instrumental music more than I like lyrical songs. That's not to say that I don't enjoy stuff with lyrics, or that I never listen to it. It's just that if I'm going to listen to music, it'll probably be soundtrack music. One of my many quirks, I suppose.
8. I enjoy making playlists for my stories. What I'll do is find tracks that match scenes from my stories--or the music will inspire story scenes--and put them together to make a playlist. It's actually a lot of fun to do, and the playlists always seem to get me even more pumped about my stories.
9. Pizza is one of my favorite foods ever. Yes, this is a totally random fact to add to the list. But pizza deserves to be in its own food group. It's just that amazing. No other reason is need. Plus, my mom makes some extremely delectable homemade pizza, so that makes it even better.
10. I am a passionate pursuer of Christ. He is the One who gave me my gifts and abilities, and He pursued me first. Because of all He has done for me, I follow Him through thick and thin. I want to ensure that in each and every one of my books, He is glorified. I want to be His steadfast pen to the world.

Well, there you have it! We are now better acquainted and can cut to the chase: what is this blog about? That question is probably at the forefront of your mind. (Unless you're thinking of pizza, which is definitely more important.) Well, let me tell what you can expect from my blog posts.

• You can expect my adventures in my writing journey, which will include anything from tips and tricks to what I'm currently working on. In fact, writing will probably one of the major focuses of my blog.
• You can expect me to talk about life in general. I'll probably share you with any interesting events that happen to me, or any ponderings I have about various "life" subjects.
• You can expect book rants or reviews, whichever I feel like doing. Because, you know, books are a pretty big part of my life, since I'm a writer/reader.
• You can expect amusing posts (at least I hope they are) about gaming and reviews for games.
• You can expect me to jabber about amazing movies or TV shows I've seen, as well as reviews for them.
• You can expect to get great suggestions from me as to what music you should listen to . . . or I'll just ramble about what I'm listening to. Also, more reviews about music.
• You can expect more than just reviews, even though it sounds like all I'm posting about. Because I probably won't do it that often. I guess we'll see what happens.
• You can expect new posts from me every Friday!

That wraps up my first post. I look forward to hanging out with you guys more in the future. Please, stay a little while and chat with me. I'm not going anywhere. And there's free pizza, so help yourselves. While you wait for a new post from me, why don't you check this guest post in which I talk about writing villains?

Farewell, my friends, until we meet again! Same time, same place!