Stories of Sovereign Man is a collection of stories, poems and accompanying illustrations inspired by a lifelong desire and ongoing exploration of what it is to be a free man. I have a compulsion to know myself distinctly as a man, not as any sort of perfect specimen, but as the realest, richest, freest version of who and what I am. It appears to be a journey with no end and constant discovery. This quest has led me to seek out experiences, resonances and intimacy with nature, the world, and ancestry in unconventional ways and to find brothers, mentors and teachers-dare I say heroes-in unexpected places. Some of the men in the following stories are real, in the flesh, others are mythic men I met in the labyrinth of my own soul. May these stories show you a side of your own face.