On a 120 acre woodland property near the eastern border of Clay County, Indiana lies a very unique place. A 100% bona fide medieval castle! No joke. Some fellow Hoosiers, who were crazy enough to want to build a fricken castle in the middle of nowhere (as am I), actually did!
Not only that, but every year at the beginning of Fall, they put on one hell of a shindig. The Clayshire Medieval Faire. An event commonly known as a Renaissance Faire. But for the uninitiated, it’s a place for people to completely unwind themselves from modernity, as much as possible and play live action D&D for two days straight. For those of you who know me personally, you’re probably thinking, “Then why the hell didn’t you go to it sooner?” I know, I know. believe me. It’s amazing I had never been to one before. In fact, 2-3 years ago, Liz and I learned about this exact Faire and wanted to go when we realized it was only a little over an hour from us. But alas, time got away from us and we weren’t able to work it in.
But that’s okay, because when I was putting together this book tour, it was one of the first places I thought of attempting to schedule! I wanted a variety of stops. Malls, Conventions, Craft Shows, Flea Markets, Book Fairs, etc… But it was only natural that a Ren Faire would fit like a glove, especially given my current series, “I Dreamt I was a Red Knight’s Squire.” So I reached out to see if I could make it happen.
Unfortunately, it was completely booked. But I was very graciously offered a spot on the wait-list. I accepted and mentioned that I could even come in last minute if need be. Which was the honest to god’s truth, as I was just starting to put together this insane schedule I’m doing right now. I held out all summer long just in case, keeping the Faire’s dates open. And though it wasn’t last minute, I did receive an invitation just over a week before the event. Unfortunately, a long time recurring vendor was unable to attend due to medical issues. I don’t know the details, but I do wish them well.
And I made sure to keep their spot warm for them!
As for the event itself, there’s really no other way to put it…
It was the best selling event on the tour yet. Not only that, but in 13 years of writing, I’ve never made so many new readers in such a short period of time. Not just from sales, but people taking my short story cards and joining my mailing list. (Pss, you can sign up too at the bottom of this page!) So far, it was one of a handful of moments on this tour where I could, without question, say to myself that this is where I need to be in life. And that all my efforts are paying off. The hundreds of unpaid hours writing, editing, experimenting, working with artists, editors, formatters, narrators, etc etc etc…all for the sake of creation itself. And now having the privilege of sharing it with others who are willing to pay for it. Because whether or not anyone would…these stories were going to be crafted no matter what. At whatever cost. The Dreamt Series alone is now almost 3 years in the making. For 2 years it was a Google Doc with upwards of 215k words in it. Not the 5 volume, light novel epic, with interior illustrations and a professionally recorded audiobook that it is now.
Look at this awesome little graphic they put together for me ahead of the event.
Speaking of Red Knight…I’ve decided that Clayshire Castle is now the official home of the series. Afterall, more people bought it on the castle grounds than the first three events of the tour combined!
But business endeavors aside, me and Liz had a blast! She made costumes for both of us in a flash. She is an award winning cosplay designer afterall. Unfortunately, she couldn’t come the second day, so I had to run things by myself. But shoutout to the Knight of Horrors guy that guarded my tent while I went to the bathroom.
And to the vendor who bought V1 of Red Knight and then brought me a triple cheeseburger for only being able to read half of it before he got too busy to finish in one day.
And to all my other awesome neighbors during the event. I have the utmost respect for you and your crafts.
And thank you to the police and medical personnel onsite, who keep the event safe and healthy. The unsung heroes, like the shuttle bus drivers who take people from the castle grounds to their cars about a mile or so away. The page boys and girls who are tasked with picking up the trash. I promise I did everything I could to make things as easy as possible for you.
And an extra special thanks to the owners/hosts of Clayshire Castle, who made this all possible. As former Airbnb hosts ourselves, we know exactly what it takes to run a good one. And we didn’t even try to serve continental breakfast. Let alone for a couple hundred people. Seriously…they had an entire staff in the Great Hall serving up food for all the vendors each morning.. There was even a, what I call, Toaster Maiden, who’s sole job was dropping poptarts and toast into an industrial sized toaster!
Between thousands of people in attendance, hundreds of people vending, staffing, securing and maintaining the event, you’d be hard pressed to find something like this within 500 miles that is pulled off with such precision. In 2026, it seems like it’s become really hard for things to just…work. But let me tell you…this works! And again, you have to be at least half as crazy as I am, plus have the means to even try pulling something like this off. God help us if I ever got the budget to attempt one upping it. I’d have to have a full scale construction of Rapunzel’s tower with 24/7, full-time cosplayers and a 365 Damsel in Distress Rescue Quest LARP (Katie, I know you’re reading this. So I hope that dress comes with climbing shoes and a set of rappelling gloves.) to even come close to besting Clayshire.
Bottom Line: Will I be attending other Ren Faires? Yes. Though I must say that Clayshire Castle has made it very difficult for any that follow, not only for the sheer magnitude of the event. But also for the refinement and heart put into its production. In fact, calling it a production diminishes what it is. It’s a community. Where simply being there puts you within 3 degrees of separation from your next friend, since everyone there shares a level of like-mindedness.
