This writing thing is a dream that will not die. I’ve tried to kill it many times before, especially after my very first novel was a stupendous flop. It took me nine years to write that book, and all that effort got me precisely nowhere. So I stopped writing once the book failed to sell.

But that didn’t last. I couldn’t ignore God’s call to keep writing and started writing short stories as a way to improve my craft. During that time, one police officer friend encouraged me to write a story about cops. Another friend pestered me to write a story about dragons.

I wanted to come up with my own story ideas and ignored theirs. But they were persistent. Eventually I caved to the pressure and wrote “Cops, Robbers…and Dragons?”

I had a surprising amount of fun writing that fantastical tale about an author named Darcy who went on a ride-along with a cop in hopes of generating an idea for her next novel. During the course of that evening, they encountered Kenton, a Dragon Collector from another dimension who was hiding out on earth with two of his dragons.

I received a lot of positive feedback from that story, and that feedback sparked the idea for The Dragon Stalker Bloodlines Saga. I began writing the Saga in 2013 and have since published three of the four books I envisioned for the series. Book four is currently underway.

Since Darcy was the author in the story that discovered the dragons, I used her as the inspiration for my pen name. The “D” in D.K. Drake thus stands for Darcy, and the “K” stands for Kimberly, the name of the woman who designed the cover of the book for me. I chose Drake as a way of tying the D and K together. Plus it’s a lot easier to say and spell than Schaefer!

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From the moment I took to the teeball field as a mini-ball player, I fell in love with the game of softball. I grew up playing the game with my three older sisters in a fastpitch league, and the best part was that my Dad coached many of my teams.

When it came time to choose a college, I wanted to go to a Christian school away from home that had a softball team. Based on that criteria, I decided upon Cedarville College in Ohio and earned my spot on the team as a walk-on.

I didn’t play much my freshman year but had a dream of becoming my team’s Most Valuable Player by my senior year. It took a lot of work, but I made my way from best benchwarmer to pinch hitter to random position player to pitcher to third baseman. And I earned that MVP team award at the end of my senior season.

Once I graduated, though, I lost my competitive connection to a team sport. I needed something to do to keep me active and competitive and turned to running.

I had never run a race before in my life but always wondered if I could conquer the mighty marathon. Why 26.2? chronicles my journey from non-runner to four-hour marathoner, and I continue to run today to keep me fit and active. Plus I simply enjoy the challenge of running mile after mile.

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The more I write about fantasy adventures, the more excited I become about living my own real adventures.

My favorite trip of all time was to Costa Rica. While there, I had the chance to go white water rafting, ziplining, hiking around volcanoes, swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, and more.

Then again, Australia and New Zealand were quite spectacular.  Snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef did top Costa Rica’s reef! 

I also had a blast in Italy in the summer of 2018 and have visited Germany, Budapest, Poland and Alaska.

In 2023, I’ll be making my first trip to South America to go on a week long backpacking trip!

Those are grand adventures that I cherish, but I also love the little fun things I get to do with my family and friends. We enjoy things like running in crazy races that test our sanity, biking down mountains, hiking, swimming, bonfires, and playing at the park.

Plus every day is an adventure when I read a book or write a story that transports me to a different time and place!