The Author Who Changed Everything: Hugh Howey and the Long Road Back

If you’ve never heard of Hugh Howey, he’s one of those rare authors who didn’t just write a great story—he reshaped how stories are shared.

He’s best known for Wool, the breakout dystopian sci-fi that launched the Silo series. It began as a self-published short story in 2011—no agent, no publisher, no plan beyond putting it out into the world. Readers found it. Word spread. Hugh kept writing. Wool evolved into a full series, topped bestseller lists, and eventually became a major Apple TV+ series. What made it revolutionary, though, was the path: Hugh retained his rights, remained independent as long as he could, and approached publishing with transparency, humility, and curiosity.

That alone would’ve been enough to inspire me.

When I first read Wool, I was still in the early days of figuring out what kind of writer I wanted to be. I’d taken every writing class I could in college—poetry, creative nonfiction, playwriting—but I ended up graduating as a history major instead of doubling up. Still, the writing never stopped.

Outside of class, I reviewed video games for the local paper, helped run a website, and co-hosted a podcast. I wrote lyrics, poems, short stories—anything to keep the creative muscle moving. Then I started Empire, Nevada, my first attempt at a full-length novel.

I believed in it.

But somewhere along the way, I broke.

A heart attack. A mental collapse. One day, in a spiral, I threw out most of the work I’d done during those years—college writing, early drafts, notes, ideas. Gone. I shelved Empire, Nevada and quietly let the rest of it go.

Years passed.

Eventually, I came back.

I use AI not as a ghostwriter, but as a sounding board and editor—a way to stay sharp and keep the process moving. I know it’s a gray area for some, but in my case, it’s helped me rediscover a rhythm I thought I’d lost.

You can explore the project here:
👉 https://wordpress.com/home/empirenevadathenovel.wordpress.com

And if Hugh Howey ever stumbles across this post: thank you.
You showed me it was possible to build something meaningful outside the gatekeeping machine. And you reminded me that even after losing years of work, and nearly losing myself, the story can still survive.

Sometimes it just takes a while to find its way home.

Not just to writing, but to that story. Empire, Nevada still mattered to me. I realized I wanted to share it eventually—not through traditional publishing, but through something more direct, more personal. So I built a blog and decided to give it away for free. For now, at least. Not because it’s not valuable—but because I’m still figuring out what it means to charge for something made with so many unconventional tools, including AI.