When the shadows come alive, Ava and Caleb discover the only
safe place is in each other’s arms.
But the closer they get, the darker the
truth becomes.
All the Shadows We
Become
by Dustin Blackwall
Genre: YA Romantasy Thriller
Caleb Ward is trying to forget the night he almost died.
Ava Lin is trying to understand why he survived.
But Hollow Creek isn’t letting either of them move on.
What starts as a strange blackout spirals into a trail of
eerie clues, shifting shadows, and a connection between Ava and Caleb that
grows hotter and more undeniable with every new secret uncovered.
Something happened
that night.
Something dangerous.
And it’s waking up.
The lights exploded into darkness so fast
it felt like the whole world had been switched off. One second, the fairgrounds
pulsed with noise; the next, a hush dropped over everything – thick, heavy,
wrong. Ava’s breath caught in her throat as the shadows around the tents
stretched, bending in directions that didn’t match the lanterns flickering
overhead.
fingers in the dark. His grip closed around hers immediately – warm, tight,
desperate – anchoring her like a lifeline.
Static rolled through the air, not sound
but pressure, brushing across her skin like cold fingertips. The wind
picked up and carried the faint smell of scorched leaves and metal. Somewhere
behind them, a ride creaked slowly, even though nothing was moving it.
the heat of his chest at her shoulder.
– a ripple of shadow that stole her breath. But Caleb was already there,
guiding her back against him, solid and unwavering.
that moment, she felt it with aching clarity: as long as he held her, she could
face anything.
All around them, people shouted – fragmented
cries swallowed by the dark. A string of carnival lights fizzled overhead,
sputtering blue sparks that made the shadows jump like living ink.
anymore.
Caleb turned, pulling her with him, and in
that split-second flash of dying light, she saw his face – terrified,
determined, and somehow still looking at her like she was the one thing in this
chaos he trusted.
The ground trembled.
The shadows bent again.
And together, hand in hand, they ran toward
whatever waited in the dark.
Can you, for those who don’t know you already, tell something about yourself and how you became an author?
I come from very humble beginnings in a small town in British Columbia. I worked the usual jobs you find in places like that — the kind that teach you patience, grit, and a deep appreciation for people. Eventually I made my way to Vancouver, where I built a career in Architectural Drafting. It was steady work, and for a long time it felt like the right path.
But somewhere along the way, something stopped resonating. I realized I was getting older, and that the little voice that had always whispered “follow your passion” wasn’t going to quiet down on its own. So I made a choice — a hopeful, slightly terrifying, wonderfully exciting choice — to finally listen.
And that’s how I found my way back to storytelling.
Writing lets me share the worlds I’ve carried with me for years… and invite readers into places where shadows glitch, secrets breathe beneath small towns, and ordinary people discover extraordinary courage. I’m grateful every day for anyone who chooses to walk into those stories with me.
What is something unique/quirky about you?
I’m a tad nerdy.
Where were you born/grew up at?
I grew up in a little town a few hours from Vancouver, B.C. — and when I say little, I mean little. It’s the kind of place where everyone knows everyone, and where the biggest claim to fame is being the crossroads of four major highways.
I didn’t stay long, though. Even as a kid, I felt this tug toward something bigger, something just beyond the tree line. It is beautiful, but the opportunities I was looking for weren’t there. So I carried those early memories with me — the quiet streets, the mountains close enough to touch, that sense of being on the edge of something unknown — and they found their way into my stories later.
Those small-town roots are still a part of me, and they shape the worlds I write. There’s something special about places where secrets linger just beneath the surface… and shadows sometimes feel alive.
If you knew you’d die tomorrow, how would you spend your last day?
Laying the back of my truck on a clear night with a blanket watching the universe move across the sky.
Who is your hero and why?
One of my greatest inspirations has always been Carl Sagan. There was something extraordinary about the way he looked at the universe — not with cold detachment, but with wonder, curiosity, and a deep sense of humanity. His work opened doors in my mind, inviting me to think bigger, dream wider, and explore ideas I might never have considered otherwise.
I still miss his voice, his gentle wisdom, and the way he made the cosmos feel both vast and intimate. His influence hasn’t faded for me; it’s woven into the way I see the world and into the stories I try to tell. He reminded all of us that imagination and science, wonder and truth, can live side by side — and that there’s beauty in asking the next question.
What do you do to unwind and relax?
I love getting outside whenever I can. Camping, being out in the fresh air, just letting the world slow down a little — it does something good for the soul. And when I really want to let loose, I’ll take my dirt bike out and ride until I’m completely worn out. There’s something freeing about it, like shaking off all the stress at once and coming back to myself.
Describe yourself in 5 words or less!
So far out of the box I can’t even see it anymore
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Honestly… I’m not sure I ever had a single moment where it clicked. Writing has been a gradual transition for me — a quiet shift rather than a dramatic one. I’m still getting used to the idea, and maybe that’s okay.
What I do know is that somewhere along the way, the stories I carried inside me started asking for space. They wanted to be written, shaped, shared. And every time I sit down to put those worlds onto the page, I feel a little more like the person I’m becoming — someone who tells stories because they matter to me, and hopefully to readers too.
So whether I call myself a “writer” or not, I’m grateful to be on this path, learning as I go, and inviting others into the worlds I create.
Do you have a favorite movie?
My favorite movie? I think I’d have to choose 2010. There’s something about it that still feels awe-inspiring to me — that sense of scale, of mystery, of looking out into the universe and realizing how small and extraordinary we really are.
It’s epic in the quietest, most meaningful way, and every time I watch it I’m reminded why stories about the unknown resonate so deeply. They make us curious. They make us dream. They invite us to imagine what else might be out there… and what might already be waiting for us.
Which of your novels can you imagine made into a movie?
LOL. Not there yet. I’m still surprised I got published!
Light Years to
Midnight
by Dustin Blackwall
Genre: SciFi Thriller
When data itself begins to speak, who decides what it’s
trying to say?
Light Years To Midnight — a globe-spanning thriller where science, faith, and
code collide in a race against a countdown written into the fabric of reality.
The wind whipped dust across the plateau as Jonas crested
the ridge, breath burning in his throat. Below him, the satellite dishes of the
abandoned relay station stretched into the dark like a field of frozen giants.
Their metal frames groaned under the rising storm, each bent toward the same
invisible point on the horizon.
He wasn’t alone.
A faint beam of light—too controlled to be an
accident—flickered between the dishes. Jonas crouched, heart thudding, watching
as a woman stepped into view, her silhouette sharp against the skeletal
machinery. She moved with the alertness of someone who had been running for far
too long.
Elena.
He had seen her face in files, in encrypted packets, in the
warnings that had chased him across continents. But seeing her here, in the
flesh, felt unreal—like walking into a photograph he wasn’t meant to
understand.
Before he could speak, a second figure emerged from the
opposite end of the array. Maya paused only when she spotted Elena, recognition
flaring across her face. They had never met, not really, but the anomaly had
braided their paths tightly enough that the moment felt inevitable.
Jonas stood and lifted a hand, but movement in the distance
froze him mid-step.
Engines.
Low, tactical, deliberate.
A convoy approached from the north, its headlights dark, its
tires crunching through gravel like muffled gunfire. Special
operations—unmarked, unhurried, confident. Not hunters, but collectors.
Maya stepped closer, her breath sharp in the cold air. “Does
it matter?”
Something pulsed beneath the earth—three beats, a pause,
three more—vibrating up through the metal frames of the dishes. The sky above
them shimmered, faint but unmistakable, as if answering the rhythm.
Jonas swallowed hard.
“No,” he said. “It doesn’t matter anymore. It’s already
found us.”
Dustin is a lifelong fan of science and speculative fiction,
blending his fascination with astronomy, technology, and the unknown into
stories that explore the edge between logic and wonder. When he’s not writing,
he’s reading, stargazing, or chasing trails on his dirt bike — always searching
for what lies just beyond understanding.
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