Friday Five – Page 2 – Andrew Careaga

Friday Five: writer John Waddy Bullion and his ‘Strangers’ thing

‘“Fun” has become very important to me when I write—in fact, it might be the most important thing.’

I started reading John Waddy Bullion‘s exceptional short story collection This World Will Never Run Out of Strangers in late December, after I’d already posted my year-end roundup of favorite books. I was only a few stories into this book, which came out from Cowboy Jamboree in November 2025, when I wished I’d either a.) read it sooner so I could’ve included it in my year-end list or b.) waited until I finished reading it to run that post so I could’ve included …Strangers, even if it meant delaying my 2025 list until 2026. It is just that good. To atone for this omission, I reached out to Jack (that’s what he goes by “Jack” in everyday life) and asked to feature him in this, the first Friday Five Q&A of 2026.

Image of the cover of John Waddy Bullion's book of short stories, "This World Will Never Run Out of Strangers" — *This World Will Never Run Out of Strangers* was published in November 2025 by Cowboy Jamboree Press

Friday Five: what’s ahead

My so-called writing and blogging plans for 2026

“Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.” So said Dwight D. Eisenhower, one of the military leaders who planned Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy against Nazi German forces.

As a career military man, Eisenhower knew what he was talking about. It was in the military where the terms SNAFU and FUBAR originated.

I was thinking about Eisenhower’s words recently as I thought about my writing plans for 2026. I also went back to my first journal entry of last year, in which I laid out my plans to finish the first draft of my novel by the end of that January 2025.