You might ask--"Who are you? And how could you possibly claim to have solved Shakespeare?"

It might seem impossible to you that anyone can solve Shakespeare. You might think that I am just being false or disruptive.

I promise you that I am not playing false with you. I am not just raising Cain.

I firmly believe that we live in a world where the impossible is becoming possible, with increased frequency.

We live in a world where someone like Tyler Perry can become one of the most successful producers in history. He emerged unexpectedly and seemingly out of nowhere. The story of his life is quite similar in some ways to the story of Shakespeare's own life. Also, is it just me or does Perry's character Madea seem like a female Falstaff?

We live in a world where an amateur artist, named Ron Piccirillo, can discover hidden animals in the Mona Lisa. For over 500 years, no one noticed these creatures that Leonardo da Vinci hid in plain sight.

The impossible is becoming possible, all around us.

In my family, there are many stories of the impossible becoming possible. My handsome, but very short grandfather, somehow wooed and won my grandmother. She was a beautiful woman, and much taller. She was about to become a Rockette. He convinced her to marry him and start a family instead. Theirs was a match made in Heaven.

My uncle and aunt, against all odds, had two beautiful children—who now have children of their own.

An uncle of mine was a real prodigal son, until he met his wife, a true match made in Heaven.

With a family like mine, nothing seemed impossible—even solving Shakespeare.

Also, I am not the first person to solve Shakespeare.

The late eminent literary critic Harold Bloom wrote a masterful analysis of all of Shakespeare's works, entitled Shakespeare: The Invention of the Human.

Bloom wrote about how Shakespeare "invented" humanity. With all of the characters he wrote, Shakespeare showed us the best and worst in people. His plays have subsequently programmed us, so to speak, to think and to speak and to behave in certain ways.

In a sense, Shakespeare made you and me and everyone in the world. Shakespeare helped to create our world where the impossible is possible.

I read Bloom's book four times. It is quite brilliant. I strongly urge you to read it. He truly understands the effect Shakespeare had on the world. But Bloom does not tell the whole story. I doubt that he could tell you a convincing story for Shakespeare's life. Bloom was a scholar, not a storyteller.

David Garrick was one of the greatest Shakespearean actors. In 1769, he created the Shakespeare Jubilee--a grand festival held in Stratford-Upon-Avon. This festival was meant to firmly establish Shakespeare as England's greatest poet. Without Garrick's celebration, Shakespeare might not be as famous today as he is.

Garrick also wanted to be recognized as Shakespeare's "high priest". He even believed that he was the "living embodiment" of William Shakespeare. Apparently, he loved William Shakespeare to a very unusual degree. He also seemed to understand who Shakespeare really was, and he understood how truly important his writings were.

I am not saying that I am the living embodiment of William Shakespeare. But, like David Garrick, I have developed a very keen understanding of Shakespeare's life and works. I have spent 20 years with him. I have spent countless hours imagining myself in Stratford-Upon-Avon, and London--in the 16th and early 17th centuries.

I understand why Garrick had no choice but to create this festival. I know what Garrick saw in Shakespeare. In a sense, my Shakespeare Solved series of novels is my version of the event that Garrick organized.

As strange as it may sound, I hope to make Shakespeare even more well known than he was before--precisely by helping you understand him even better. Everyone on the planet knows the name William Shakespeare. But we have not been told an honest and true story of who he was. Until now.

Garrick knew what Bloom later discovered--that Shakespeare had the power to make people into better human beings. Garrick knew that one day the whole world might become a place where all would be well, for all of us. Garrick knew that the best way to spread such joy was to elevate Shakespeare even higher. He had to share Shakespeare with as many people as possible.

I have much the same purpose. I am not an actor like Garrick. I am a writer. I hope that this Shakespeare Solved series of novels finds a very wide audience.

I am no Shakespeare. I can not write plays and poems like he did. But I am a storyteller, like he was. This story came to me--like an incredible gift--so I am compelled to share it with you. It is too precious a gift for me to keep it to myself.

Like Garrick, I love Shakespeare to a great degree. I am endlessly fascinated by his life and works. Reading the words he wrote and studying the history of his life is an extraordinarily humbling experience. I hope you approach his story with an open mind.

There are other scholars who have solved some rather important elements of Shakespeare's life and works. Every book I have read about him has value, and I have read many over the last twenty years.

But the story of how I solved Shakespeare is a much longer one. There are many moments, many dots, across my life that led me here. There are many factors that, when combined together, gave me a unique perspective on our world. This was the key that unlocked the meaning behind Shakespeare's life and works.

I love the commencement speech that Steve Jobs gave, in which he said that it was impossible to connect the dots in his life, when he looked forward at them. It was clearer when he looked at such dots in hindsight.

That was the kind of life I have had. Much of my life did not make sense while I was living it, but it makes a lot of sense looking back.

My life has been a long strange trip. I have had my fair share of setbacks, failures, sadness, and losses. But now when I look at the path I took to discover Shakespeare, it does not seem like such a broken road. It looks like a rather straight path.

Please believe me when I say that I fully understand that this Shakespeare Solved series is not about me. This is Shakespeare's story. Not mine. I believe that the discoveries I have made for this Shakespeare Solved series are in fact gifts. They were given to me--in order for me to write this story to the best of my ability--so that you would know the true story of William Shakespeare.

I am a mere messenger. He is the message.

However, I recognize that my claims of having "solved" Shakespeare will be met with some great degree of scepticism.

Therefore, I want to tell you about how this Shakespeare Solved series came to be--and why it was written by someone as unexpected as me.

I beg your indulgence as I tell you about my life before and after Shakespeare came into it. I also have to publicly thank some very important people in my life who contributed to this work.

The first person I have to thank is my mother. She continues to be the greatest maverick and trail-blazer I have ever known. She has a remarkable ability to think outside of the box, which absolutely inspired me as far as my Shakespeare discoveries.

To her, the idea that I have solved Shakespeare does not come as a surprise, especially because I am an Aquarius (in the dawn of the Age of Aquarius)—who are known for being revolutionary and innovative.

One of the most unusual factors in my life is that I have two fathers.

I like to think that my first father is the father who made me. As my biological father he brought me into this world. My parents divorced when I was very young. A few years later, my mother married another man. He is my second father. After my mother, he had the most influence in my life. I like to think that he made me the person I am today.

He was also the father who first encouraged me to know Shakespeare.

His favorite Shakespeare production was the Taming of the Shrew movie, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. He taught me a very important lesson--if you want to tame a shrew, you must first love the shrew.

As the years passed, I saw quite a lot of my first father. He remarried, which meant that I was blessed with a great step-mother and two more brothers.

Believe it or not, my mother, my step-mother, and my two fathers even became rather close friends.

I was therefore uniquely blessed with two fathers whom I love very much. That might seem impossible to some people. But having two fathers is one of the most important parts of my life, where what seemed impossible was made possible.

Also, when my second father came into my life, he brought with him a whole other family. I was blessed with new grandparents, uncles and aunts, and cousins. They welcomed me into their lives with such love. They enriched my life, and had a profound influence on the person I have become.

There is a doubleness or duality in Shakespeare's writing. He constantly writes something and immediately challenges it from the opposite direction, as if he had two minds. For example, as Hamlet says "To be" he immediately challenges his words with "Or not to be."

Part of Shakespeare's genius is how well he examines everything from both sides. Part of the power of his plays is his ability to create characters who challenge each other--and who are perfectly matched against each other. This conflict is everywhere in his plays. For example, Othello, is betrayed by a man who is his opposite in most every way.

Having two fathers gave me a similar doubleness of mind from a very early age. When I was a child, it was very confusing. But over time I came to discover what a gift it is.

I do think that having two fathers gave me a perspective that allowed me to understand Shakespeare. It gave me two minds.

Also, as you will see, the matter of fathers is at the heart of many of Shakespeare's plays. What he has to say about fathers and father-figures may surprise you.

I grew up in New York City. In the 1970s, the city was exciting and full of energy, but it was also a dangerous and dirty place. I had to become streetwise, and grow eyes in the back of my head.

Growing up in New York City made me a very tolerant person. I knew and met and saw people from all over the world.

In the late 80s the city began to transform into a safer and better place. It was a true miracle to me. What seemed impossible became possible.

I was obsessed with movies. I kept a list, but I stopped counting after 5,000 movies. I loved acting and singing. Full of energy, I also acted up a lot, and got into trouble sometimes.

I did not take my studies seriously. I was a very average student. I was a painfully slow reader. I was always falling behind in class when it came to reading. It took me many years to be able to read faster.

Many years later, I realized that this prepared me for studying Shakespeare. I am now convinced that most people read too quickly. When it comes to Shakespeare, most people overlook how carefully he chose his words.

I have an older brother. He is the funniest person I know. We loved comedy movies, stand-up comedy shows, and comedians. Robin Williams was an incredibly important idol for both of us.

My brother and I spent endless hours listening to comedians, on vinyl records. We listened to Lenny Bruce, Steve Martin, Richard Pryor, Eddie Murphy, Whoopi Goldberg, and others. The recording of the 2000 Year Old Man, by Carl Reiner and Mel Brooks, was a favorite. Those were some of my greatest and most formative moments from my childhood.

My brother and I were not just listening for fun. We both wanted to know how to make people laugh. I am forever grateful to my brother for this time together. Like any brothers, we did not always get along. But we always had movies and comedy to bring us together. Also, I could not later write funny dialogue for some of the figures in my novel without this experience with my brother.

Over the years, we watched all the Monty Python TV episodes and movies together. We developed a love for British comedy, including Fawlty Towers, Blackadder, The Young Ones, etc.                                    

A grade school teacher saw something in both of us. She got us auditions to join the children's chorus for the Metropolitan Opera. We both sang there under the guidance of Mildred Hohner, a wonderful lady, who founded the children's chorus.

I had to go to rehearsals, learn to sing songs in foreign languages, get fit for costumes, and work at night after school. I was on stage with Luciano Pavarotti, Rudolf Nureyev and other world famous performers. I was in an opera designed by David Hockney, entitled L'Enfant et les Sortileges--which means "Child and the Magic Spells." I played a pink moth.

I loved working, even as a child. I would frequently work throughout high school--serving ice cream, and managing a gift card shop. I learned a lot working in these retail shops. The lessons I learned there helped me understand Shakespeare's own retail experience--working in his father's glove shop.

I went to Professional Children's School, to become a working actor. I went on lots of auditions, but I was not very good at it. Also, I started late. Most all of the other child actors had been working from a very early age.

I loved being around the other students, who were working actors, ballet dancers, singers, and athletes. There was an infectious energy being around these talented people. I did not think that I was anywhere nearly as talented as they were, but they inspired me to work hard at pursuing a dream.

A funny and true story--my two best friends and I were background extras in the original 18-minute Michael Jackson Bad music video, in 1987. We played the prep school boys in the beginning. You can see the side of my head in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment, as Michael is standing near a doorway.

But even though my part was small, I got to meet Michael Jackson at the very height of his fame. He was arguably the most famous person on the planet at that moment. And I got to watch the video's director and producer at work, Martin Scorsese and Quincy Jones.

Michael Jackson was born to a working-class family, in Gary, Indiana. He was the eighth of ten children living with his parents in a house with only two bedrooms. He became the undisputed King of Pop.

His whole life was proof that what seemed impossible became possible.

It was a magical moment in my life, to meet a person who was not "born great"--but who achieved such incredible greatness, and had greatness thrust upon him. It still inspires me today.

I began to enjoy my studies at school--especially history. I still did not like reading. It took too much time. I preferred movies. My mother and father were voracious readers, and their knowledge of books actually intimidated me.

But then my father introduced me to James Clavell. I was terrified by such long books. Shōgun and Noble House are over one thousand pages each!

But once I began to read them, I was hooked. I read all of his books, very slowly and painstakingly. It took me months to read a single book. My mother then introduced me to the Dune series. My father also introduced me to Sherlock Holmes.

I discovered that I did in fact enjoy reading, especially if the books were long and engrossing. I realized that most books bored me. I needed books that really challenged me.

When I look back at this period of time, I realize that my parents gave me a priceless gift. Those novels gave me what I consider to be a very strong and wide "mental bandwidth"--which is one of the most important reasons why I would solve Shakespeare many years later.

When I write nowadays, I often think of Clavell's monumental books. I think about how Clavell's first draft of Shōgun was 2,300 pages! His editor made him cut out hundreds of pages. I often wonder where the original draft is. I believe that people would read it. I would.

My father inspired me to read the works of James Michener, which are quite long, but utterly mesmerizing. His omniscient style of writing is masterful and astonishing. I very consciously aspire to write as well as he does.

If you want to know my literary touchstones, they are Clavell, Michener, Frank Herbert, Tolkien, Thomas Harris, and of course, Shakespeare himself.

I am delighted to see how so many people read long books these days--like the Harry Potter books and the George R.R. Martin books. I know people who have read each of these books several times. It would seem that there is a real hunger for such books, and that people will read even very long books as long as they are worth reading.

I often think about Martin, and his Game of Thrones novels. He wanted to write novels without limiting them or cutting out anything--without "compromising his imagination".

It is one of the reasons why I chose to serialize my novels, so I could set my imagination free, without worrying about length. If you like Martin's novels, I believe that you will enjoy my writing even more. Martin fictionalizes much of the of history that I am writing about. You will see that history is indeed far stranger than fiction--and far more interesting.

When I first read Shakespeare's plays in high school, I did not enjoy them. They were very hard for me to appreciate. I saw some of the movies, especially by Kenneth Branagh. But I never gave the Bard much thought. I knew that he was important but I did not think that he was very relevant to me. I was far more interested in the movies by George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and James Cameron than any old plays from the Elizabethan era.

As high school came to a close, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. I became a better student, and really loved learning. I began to think of being a teacher. But I still dreamed of being an actor. I thought I should just get lost in the world somewhere and keep myself employed.

Near the end of high school, I wrote some short stories. I loved and hated writing creatively. Laboring over words has never been easy for me, not even today. But then my teacher had me read the stories aloud to a class. When I saw how the other students watched and listened with rapt attention, it sparked a fire in me that has never gone away. That was when I first became a writer.

I went to New York University. I was a poor student at first. In my first semester I failed my Japanese language class. I had never received a failing grade before. I was not the only one--more than half the class failed. It was humiliating nevertheless.

But I was incredibly fortunate to take a class taught by the late James Carse. He was the head of the religion department, and was one of the most popular professors at NYU. He had an extraordinary gift for teaching religion and religious philosophy in an entertaining way. He had a towering intellect, but he was very down to earth. He could make you cry tears of laughter, he was so funny. When I think of Falstaff, I often think of Carse.

I had the privilege of speaking privately with him many times. He seemed to always be more interested in questions than answers. He was like Socrates, who was the wisest man in Athens because he knew that he did not know anything. Carse taught me to show humility, and to embrace ignorance--especially when it comes to the religions of the world.

I often think of this when I think about my Shakespeare work. Reading and studying Shakespeare almost every day for 20 years has been a very humbling experience. I have had to teach myself to read his work without preconceived ideas, and to always keep a "beginner's mind"--a concept from Zen Buddhism.

In other words, I did not solve Shakespeare from the very beginning. It was more like Shakespeare revealed himself to me over time, the longer that I was willing to humble myself before him, to learn at his feet.

I did not know much of anything about religion, but I continued to take more of Carse's classes, just to see and hear him teach. I also took more religion courses--covering most all of the world's religions and philosophies, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Shintoism, Jainism, and others.

I had the privilege of attending the late Francis Peters' class Judaism, Christianity and Islam. He introduced me to the idea that all Jewish, Christian and Muslim people are the "Children of Abraham"--which has relevance today with the recent Abraham Accords. As you will see, this kind of fusion--of different philosophical, religious, and cultural principles--plays an important part in Shakespeare's life and works.

I was taking so many classes in the religion department, I soon had almost enough credits to fulfill a major in religion. I do not really think that I consciously chose to major in religion. I like to think that religion chose me.

Some of my Christian relatives thought I wanted to become a priest. Some of my Jewish relatives thought I wanted to become a rabbi. I did not look at religion as a career, or as a vocation--but I do believe I heard something calling to me.

The other towering figure in the religion department was Father Edward T. Oakes, S.J. He was a truly brilliant man. He and I became fast friends, especially because we were both movie buffs. He loved talking about how religion permeates the culture--even in movies and television shows that are not considered religious. We were big Twin Peaks fans.

In one of his classes, we watched some movies, such as Man For All Seasons, about Saint Thomas More. As you will see, More was an important figure for Shakespeare. There was a Sir Thomas More play, which he may have had a hand in writing.

One of the most important classes he taught was a close exegesis of the Gospels. Father Oakes slowly guided us book by book, chapter by chapter, and verse by verse, through the four books. I am not a biblical scholar, but this class inspired me to read the Bible as slowly as possible, and as critically as possible. Father Oakes gave me one of the greatest gifts I have ever received--the confidence to read and to talk about sacred Scripture.

I think often about this class, and how important it would become to me later. Over the years, as I conducted my close exegesis of Shakespeare, I realized that it was necessary to return to a study of the Bible. So I read the New Living Translation--side by side with the Geneva version and the King James Version. It took me over a year to read the Bible--across three translations.

Some people may think that Shakespeare's biblical allusions are just literary decorations. As you will see, Shakespeare's love of the Bible and knowledge of many of its many translations is profound. I urge you to read Shakespeare next to an open Bible. You will find a great deal of treasure on your own.

In the first semester of my senior year, I had an unusual idea. I asked Father Oakes if he would supervise an independent study with me, so I could write a short story with a religious theme. He was delighted to do so. I spent the whole semester writing the story. It was the single hardest thing I had ever done. Writing sometimes made me sick to my stomach, and the only cure was to keep writing.

I made every mistake as a writer that you could make. The story became confusing, a real tangled mess. I actually failed to finish the story by the end of the semester. I was upset and truly ashamed. But Father Oakes saw the effort I put into it. He gave me an A grade!

I was thrilled. I asked him if we could do another independent study, so I could write a different story. He eagerly said yes.

Writing the second story was even harder. It became an even worse tangled mess. I wrote myself into such a huge corner, I could not find my way out. I did not finish the story either. I was upset and ashamed again.

But Father Oakes saw how hard I tried. He gave me another A grade.

I can not tell you how often I have thought about that experience. I simply would not be a writer today without Father Oakes as a teacher, as a mentor, and as a friend.

There were other great classes I took. Why I chose those classes was a mystery to me at the time, but now I see in hindsight that they part a larger path that brought me to Shakespeare.

Why did I take a class about etymology?

It should not come as a surprise to you that Shakespeare was obsessed with words. Some of the most important tools I use to decipher Shakespeare are etymology websites. For many years, I have studied the words that Shakespeare uses, and why he used them. I discovered some of the words that were the most meaningful to him, and how they unlock what his plays and poems really mean. He has a very personal and coded language which he communicates across his entire body of work.

Little did I know at the time that taking a class about etymology would serve me many years later, to solve Shakespeare.

Why did I take a class about the tales of King Arthur? As you will see, Shakespeare was fascinated by Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. It plays a large part in my novel.

Why did I take a class for Silent Theatre, or Mime? All of the other students had dancing backgrounds. I did not. In the first few classes, I was the single worst student, a real embarrassment. The other students thought I was a fool at first. But then I confounded them when I became one of the best students, rising fast to the head of the class. The professor, who had been very displeased with me at first, began to praise me frequently.

When I took that class, it was a real leap of faith. I often think about how some of the best things I have ever done were by faith and not by sight.

When I write about Richard Tarlton in my novel, I often think about this mime class. Tarlton was the most famous actor and comedian in the time of Queen Elizabeth. He was indeed a fool who did foolish things, like leaping and dancing jigs, to confound people who thought they were wise.

My mother often reminds me of the old saying--"Fools rush in where angels (or wise men) fear to tread." But she also liked to say--"Fools may rush in, but sometimes they get the best seats!"

Another towering figure in my life at NYU was Professor Friedrich Ulfers. He taught some classes at the graduate level, which were open to some undergraduate students. I had the privilege of taking his class about Friedrich Nietzsche, and a class about Franz Kafka.

They were some of the hardest classes I had ever taken, but they were thrilling. And Professor Ulfers has a magical ability as a teacher. In his hands, even the most complicated ideas were transformed and made clear. He has a tremendous love for language. He taught his students how mysterious and malleable words can be.

I think of him often, as a Prospero figure and guide in my life.

The meaning of what Nietzsche and Kafka write was not always clear to me, but after a few months of studying their words, I was able to get into their heads and almost think like them. For the final paper for the Nietzsche class, I wrote essays in the voice of Nietzsche.

Professor Ulfers was delighted. He applauded my effort. He praised me for my einfühlung--an "in-feeling"--a penetrating aesthetic empathy.

Many years later, as I began to study Shakespeare's plays and poems, that same kind of emotional artistic entanglement occurred. In fact, that "in-feeling" penetration of Shakespeare's mind happened rather quickly. I could think like he thought. Now, after two decades of studying his words, I have a truly deep feeling for who he was.

If I have a "superpower" so to speak, it would be this einfühlung. This empathy is far more powerful than sympathy. When I spend time with a person, I don't feel for them. I can often feel their feelings as if they were my own.

I am quite certain that William Shakespeare had the exact same superpower. With every single character he created, he was emotionally entangled with them.

I also often think of what Shakespeare would think of Nietzsche, and how both men were discussing some of the same ideas.

It is also interesting that before Nietzsche was a philosopher, he was a philologist. I believe that what he discovered in his study of words is very similar to what Shakespeare found in language.

It has been said that Nietzsche is the very best writer of the German language. While I do not speak or read German, I know that Nietzsche's words (even in translation) are a very "potent art"--filled with the same "rough magic" that is found in Shakespeare's own works.

As far as Kafka is concerned, I think you would agree that some of Shakespeare's plays are kafkaesque--like Hamlet and Measure for Measure.

Studying Nietzsche and Kafka prepared me to approach Shakespeare many years later. They prepared me to have the eyes to see and the ears to hear what Shakespeare actually wrote.

One of Professor Ulfers's favorite terms was unheimlich--which means "weird" and "uncanny". He used the word to describe how even the most familiar language, in the books by Kafka for example, can seem strange, mysterious and even frightening. This word still haunts me today. There is a lot that is uncanny in the works of Shakespeare.

Professor Ulfers also taught a class in which I first learned about the literary genre known as Bildungsroman--novels where the hero of the story grows up and builds their character. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harry Potter, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower are some examples.

This class had a profound impact on me. I very consciously wanted to take what I knew about Shakespeare and turn it into a story of how the young man from Stratford came to London--and how he built his character.

I also had a class in which I made my very first serious attempts at poetry. I loved and hated it in equal measure. No matter how much my professor praised the poems, I still had a nagging feeling that I was not writing to my full potential. I generally have a nauseating sea-sick feeling while I write prose, even today. Writing poetry makes it even worse.

In my freshman year, Joe Papp of New York's Public Theater launched the Shakespeare Marathon. He planned to produce 36 Shakespeare plays in six years. My father bought the subscription. He took me to many of the productions. We saw Al Pacino and Martin Sheen in Julius Caesar, Christopher Walken as Coriolanus, and Denzel Washington as Richard III.

This was my first serious attempt at learning about Shakespeare. But while I enjoyed the plays, I was much too busy at NYU to stop and study the Bard very closely.

I graduated from NYU without a clear idea for my future. But I was eager to continue to write. Since I always loved movies, I became increasingly eager to write screenplays. In the late 80s and early 90s the market was hot for screenplays. I planned to get a job, to support myself while I began to learn the process of writing scripts. I was working part-time in a video store while at NYU, so I expected to just work there full-time.

My brother moved to Los Angeles. He married a wonderful woman and they soon had two children. I wanted to follow him there and become a successful screenwriter.

Lucky me--I was in Los Angeles for the 1994 Northridge earthquake. Believe it or not, I was actually in Northridge the night of the earthquake. It was truly terrifying and I still had a profound fear of quakes for many years.

For the next 18 years I worked mostly as a salesperson and manager in stores in Los Angeles and Beverly Hills. I met many thousands of people in that time--who came from all over the world. I learned how to treat such people with respect, and with hospitality--even if I could not speak any of their languages.

One of my first jobs was as a store manager for Blockbuster Video. It was hard work, but I enjoyed talking about movies all day. I also saw well over 1,000 movies in the time I was there.

A funny and true story--the South Park television show was first released for sale and rental (a 3-pack VHS set) in 1998. Not a single Blockbuster store carried it--except mine. I was the only store manager out of 3,000 stores in the USA to order it ahead of its release date. I ordered a few copies for sale, and a few for rental. It cost about $200 for the copies. It was a huge success in my store, making several thousands of dollars in profit. The Blockbuster corporate offices sent executives to my store to investigate. They decided to order South Park for ALL of their stores.

I like to think that I helped make South Park an even bigger success than it would have otherwise been.

At other stores I even sold leather goods, like gloves, belts, wallets, handbags, and shoes. I became very knowledgeable about such goods, which gave me an appreciation for the work that Shakespeare himself did. His father was a glove-maker, which meant that Shakespeare would have experience making and selling all sorts of leather goods.

I also spent a great deal of time with Victor Zatikian, at his famous shop, Progressive Shoe Repair, in Beverly Hills. I frequently sent shoes, belts and other items for him to repair. I also got to know his son, Jacques, who first began to work with his father when he was 14 years old. They are incredibly friendly people. They work incredibly hard. When I think of Shakespeare working together with his father, all I have to do is think of Jacques and Victor.

I spent a lot of time with the late Haygaz Melikian, a master tailor. We had frequent chats about life in general. He had served in the military. He once told me that in order to be a manager of a large store was like being an officer in command of many soldiers. He told me that from his experience, the best leaders were able to "make their hearts larger." He told me to make my heart more expansive.

When I look back now, at all of my years before my Shakespeare work, I think that it was a crucial early period. I had to work all of those jobs, in order to make my heart bigger, to make my emotional bandwidth even wider. Reading and studying Shakespeare requires you to see with your heart more than with your head--to "see feelingly" as he put it.

Mr. Melikian was one of many such mentors in my life. When I think of Falstaff, I often think of him.

I also enjoyed working at such retail stores because I met lots of celebrities--including Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mark Hamill, Jackie Chan, Jennifer Lopez, Celine Dion, Gwyneth Paltrow, Christian Bale, Penelope Cruz, Baz Luhrmann, Clark Gregg, Morrissey, Ke Huy Quan, Donnie Yen, Scott Bakula, and Jang Dong-gun.

My personal favorite client of all was none other than Robin Williams.

It was another powerfully magical experience in my life, to meet him, and see him several times over the years. He was so awesomely funny and so incredibly kind. He took to affectionately calling me mijo--"my son."

He had an awesome puckish and childlike spirit. I think of him often, especially when I write about Richard Tarlton, the most famous comedian in Shakespeare's time. In other words, the spirit of Robin Williams lives on in Tarlton in my novel.

I worked 40 or more hours a week at these different jobs. Almost each and every night I worked on screenplays. On my days off from my day job, I would usually work on screenplays. When I had time off from work, or vacations, I would stay home and work on screenplays.

I took screenwriting courses from UCLA Extension and Writer's Boot Camp. I received a lot of positive encouragement and feedback, which helped me gain a great deal of confidence.

I saw a lot of movies--as many movies as I could possibly see.

Over the course of 18 years, I wrote more than 20 screenplays. I did everything I could to be discovered as a screenwriter. I made phone calls, and sent query letters. I did well with contests, and for a time I even had managers. But I did not succeed.

In 1998, I had a dark night of the soul. I seriously thought about giving up as a writer. I knew that I was getting better as a writer, but I was not selling the scripts. I had to make incredible sacrifices to work on screenplays. It was a hard time.

In that time of crisis, I did something I had rarely done in my entire life--I prayed to God.

I was inspired by a very close friend, who had recently been born again. He and his wife and his church friends had been trying to get me to go to church with them. I am forever grateful to him for how much he took a very personal interest in me at a time when I was becoming spiritually lost.

I prayed repeatedly for many months, and out loud. I asked God to give me a great idea for a screenplay. I wanted Him to bless me with a script so powerful that it would launch my career. In return, I made a very solemn vow to God that I would never ever give up writing.

I saw The Sixth Sense around that time. It was a colossal success, and it was created by the relatively unknown M. Night Shyamalan. The screenplay was one of the most masterful I had ever read. It really inspired me. I emulated his style for years. I asked God to give me a screenplay idea as big as The Sixth Sense.

So I kept on writing. I had some of my very best and most ambitious ideas in the next few years. I had more energy as a writer, and frequently woke up in the middle of the night, with ideas. I often thought that I was like Jacob who wrestled with God. I wrote a screenplay about the famous pirate, Jean Lafitte. I had to spend about two years just researching it. I couldn't sell it.

Then one morning I woke up with a whole movie playing in my mind, a Top Gun fighter jet movie. I could see it in my mind. It truly felt like God had downloaded a whole film in my head! I happily studied about jets for about a year. When I finished it, it was one of the very best scripts I had ever written.

This was also when I fell in love for the first time in my life. She was like no one else I had ever met. Falling in love was nothing like we expected. It was a huge surprise and shock for both of us—like an ego death, or dying to self. She and I talked a lot about getting married.

I was so excited about my life, and especially about the fighter jet screenplay. I really believed that God was answering my prayer.

But I still couldn't sell it.

Then my girlfriend and I broke up.

As good as my life was, it quickly became a nightmare. I had another huge crisis of faith. It was 2004, and I was at my wit's end. This was a real low point in my life.

On a whim, I watched the DVD for Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice--starring Al Pacino as Shylock, Jeremy Irons as Antonio, and Joseph Fiennes as Bassanio.

As I watched the story, I had the most amazing experience. I saw two movies at the same time--one on the screen and one in my head. I saw and heard a much funnier version going on in my mind. It was almost like I could hear the voices of Robin Williams and Mel Brooks and Rowan Atkinson and John Cleese and other comedians delivering some of the lines--which was a vast improvement over what Pacino and Irons were doing.

I began to realize that Merchant of Venice was perhaps Shakespeare's funniest play--full of outrageously bawdy and politically incorrect jokes.

I had an idea to write a funnier and zanier version of the play--to amplify the humor I thought was hiding in the play. Merchant is arguably Shakespeare's most problematic "problem plays."

I had this very strange notion that I had solved it.

I was truly terrified at the prospect of re-writing Shakespeare. For nearly a year, I did everything I could to avoid Shakespeare. I even wrote a whole other screenplay in that time to distract myself. But the longer I avoided Shakespeare, the more he weighed on my mind. I frequently woke up in the dead of night, with thoughts and ideas about Shakespeare. God clearly wanted to wrestle with me about The Bard.

I told myself--"It can not be possible to solve Shakespeare!"

But I had lived a life where so many impossible things actually happened.

I asked myself--"Who am I to solve Shakespeare? Surely there is another person, another writer, or some scholar, who is far better qualified to solve Shakespeare."

I was reminded of the quote--"God does not choose the qualified. God qualifies the chosen."

I also became really excited by imagining a truly screwball version of Merchant where any or all of the greatest comedy actors could work together. Wouldn’t you like to see Shakespeare performed by the Pythons, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy, Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Mike Myers, Ricky Gervais, Jim Carrey, Steve Carrell, Eddie Izzard, Sacha Baron Cohen, Russell Brand, Tracey Ullman, Kate McKinnon, Kristen Wiig, and others, all together in the same movie?

I realized that I had to learn as much as I could about Shakespeare. I thought it might take one or two years of heavy research to prepare myself. It ended up taking five years.

After five whole years of research, while I was still working usually far more than 40 hours per week, I wrote a new Merchant of Venice. It got a lot of attention, and many producers and agents were very receptive. But I couldn't sell it.

Then I closely studied Richard III and I wrote a new version of that, too. It also got a lot of attention. But I couldn't sell it.

The next year, I closely studied Hamlet and I wrote a new version of that. It also got a lot of attention. But I couldn't sell it.

Then my second father died. I moved to Virginia to be closer to my mother.

Since that time, I was able to study and to write full time. I was able to do my Shakespeare work every single day.

I am fortunate to live near Washington D.C. because of all of the theatres that perform Shakespeare--especially the Folger, and the Shakespeare Theatre Company.

I frequently went to New York to see plays. I saw Mark Rylance in the Shakespeare's Globe productions of Richard III and Twelfth Night--co-starring Stephen Fry as Malvolio. I saw Alan Cumming in his one-man Macbeth. I saw John Lithgow as King Lear, at Shakespeare In The Park.

I also went to see the wonderful Baltimore Shakespeare Factory's productions, especially the ones performed in Original Pronunciation. Their OP version of Merchant was simply astonishing.

I also went to the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton, Virginia. I don't know if there is a greater or harder working Shakespeare company in the USA or the world.

I created a blog about many of the discoveries I had made regarding these three plays and others. I worked on this Shakespeare Solved blog for nearly ten years, during which time it became the number one Shakespeare blog in the world.

I had wanted to make my Shakespeare movie adaptations. But the more I studied Shakespeare over the next decade, I found so much more about his life and works that it would not fit into a series of movies.

I also gave myself time to read some very important books--including The Iliad, The Odyssey, The Aeneid, and some Arthurian literature. This is when I read the Bible. I wanted to know what Shakespeare would have thought of such books and stories. As you will see, Shakespeare had a very unique perspective when it came to Homer, Virgil and other writers, especially from ancient Greece and Rome. In his own way, Shakespeare himself solved these other books.

During that time, Netflix and other streaming platforms were getting bigger and better. I decided to write a Shakespeare Solved television series. I quickly created an outline and bible for 8 seasons of 13 episodes each.

It took about 2 years to write the first 13 episodes.

I met with some of the most powerful figures in Hollywood. But I could not sell it.

That is when I decided to turn this story into a series of novels. I was tired of asking film and TV executives permission to tell you this story.

I am very eager to give you this whole story, that has been growing for 20 years.

The funny thing is that all of these delays have actually been blessings in disguise. In fact, I needed all of that time to discover some of the most astonishing things about Shakespeare's life and works. The most important discoveries only came in the last two years.

I like to think that Shakespeare was not going to reveal the full and whole truth about himself and his writings any sooner. I think he wanted me to earn it the hard way.

I also believe that I could not have written the true story of Shakespeare any sooner. I had to live a full life first. I had to gain some wisdom that only the slow passage of time provides.

I also had to learn how to speak to my friends and family about my discoveries. Some of them were quite skeptical at first, but over time they began to see Shakespeare as I saw him. As soon as my best friend read my earliest work, from around 2007, he immediately saw the truth of what I was saying. That was immensely gratifying, and I am forever grateful for his support and encouragement.

For example, the threat of war was very real in Shakespeare's day. As you will see, it will have an effect on him and his brothers. I have a brother who bravely went to war. He was a very different person before he joined the military. His personal transformation inspires me to this day. That experience helps me understand Shakespeare and his brothers.

As you are well aware, Shakespeare frequently wrote about love, and about young lovers. I have another brother who found love, and it changed everything about him. He and his wife are a match made in Heaven. His story inspires me to this day. It helps me understand the transformative power of love. And I'm not sure you have lived until you have gone to a raucous Scottish wedding!

I also had to find out how joyous it feels to be in love, and the misery when love is lost. And I had to learn to continue to believe in love, and to be a hopeless romantic. I had to learn to wait patiently for own my match made in Heaven.

Also, not long ago, my mother had a stroke. I had to become her caregiver. It has been one of the most difficult periods in our lives, but it has become one of the most rewarding experiences for both of us. There are lots of blessings in the brokenness. We have both learned to overcome obstacles not by faking it until we make it, but to faith it until we make it. We also got to meet some really special people, who are often unaware of how truly special they are. To my mother and me, these doctors, therapists and nurses are angels. And we are forever grateful to all of them—Ari, Kelley, Graham, Ashley, Tiffany, Chanchal, Eunsol, Kate, Allen, Taylor, Norah and Josephine.

As you will see, how my mother’s stroke affected my family will play a major part of Shakespeare’s story.

And what about that prayer I made to God?

I truly believe that He tested me, and put me through so many trials, in order to answer that original prayer. He wrestled with me for a very long time--not to kill me, or hurt me. He wanted to make me stronger, and make me worthy to write about William Shakespeare.

In bringing me to Shakespeare, He gave me far far more than I had asked for. What I have been given would not fit into a series of movies, or a television series. It would not fit into a single novel, but rather a whole series of novels.

Over the last few years, as I have been writing this novel series, I realized that I had several books worth of material.

As I began to write the first novel, it was exhilarating to write everything I saw fit to write. There is a lot to this story, and I want you to have it all.

As I write, I still make fresh discoveries. Even though I know how this story ends, I am excited to find such surprises.

Also, especially in the last few years, I have had time to reflect on how I was given all of this, and why it was that this was given to me, of all people.

I realized that this is a gift that was given to me, to deliver to you. I realized that I am only one person, in a long line of people, who made this happen. I am truly standing on the shoulders of giants, like Garrick and Bloom--and my family, my friends, my mentors, Shakespearean actors and directors and scholars.

I also like to think that God has an incredible sense of humor. He must have wanted me and my work to emerge seemingly out of nowhere, just like He wanted Shakespeare himself to emerge unexpectedly from Stratford-Upon-Avon.

I believe that God also clearly wants you to know that you live in a world where the impossible is possible. And in such a world, we should pray bigger prayers. Perhaps He will grant even our grandest prayers, as long as we have the faith to ask Him.

Over the years, I learned something important. If the dreams you have for your life have never made you pray to God, then your dreams are too small.

Also, it is very good to believe in God. But what if we were to begin to know Him--beyond any doubt--and sincerely ask Him for His gifts and grace? What we desire the most might be manifested in our lives more frequently.

Over the years, I began to rely on and trust Him with all of my heart. As soon as I did not ''lean on my own understanding"--the discoveries and solutions about Shakespeare came faster to me. Sometimes even daily, and even several times per day. It will likely take many novels to share all of them with you.

It may seem to you like a mystery that anyone could solve Shakespeare. Perhaps you may think that it is a miracle. It is a mystery and a miracle even to me—even after 20 years of working at solving Shakespeare.

God moves in mysterious ways. I don’t pretend to understand His ways, and how He works. However, I do know that God is still working. He is moving in our world. This whole series of novels is a testament to that. This whole series of novels, every last chapter, has been a reward for decades of wrestling with God.

I hope you enjoy reading these novels as much as I enjoy writing them.

Steve Martin once wrote: "Thank you to the audience without whom I would only be myself."

I am writing this Shakespeare story for you--no matter who you are, or where you are.

Shakespeare made plays for his audiences. It was no mistake that he named his famous theatre The Globe. He did not write just for some people, or an educated elite. He wrote for all of us--no matter where we are on this globe.

Cheers,

David