Claimed by Rafa is book two in your Raiden Warriors sci-fi series. What were some ideas that you wanted to introduce in this book that were different from book one?

In book 1, Claimed by Nicolai, I focused mainly on Raiden society, a patriarchal society. The warriors have been raised to appreciate females, but not necessarily respect them. When she is claimed against her will, Abby begins to show their prince the error of their ways—though she’s aware that nothing so set in stone like this will be easily changed. We begin Claimed by Rafa in much the same way, with Aaliyah, Abby’s best friend, being claimed against her will. In Rafa’s case, I’d hoped to not only get through to him how wrong it was to claim a female without getting her permission first, but to learn to empathize with Aaliyah’s unique situation. Aaliyah came from an abusive past, and anyone who has personal experience with sexual and/or physical abuse will tell you it isn’t something you just get over. You have to learn how to take charge of your life, which is easier said than done. I believe I found a way in Claimed by Rafa to get through to Rafa just how traumatizing abuse like Aaliyah suffered can be. In the same breath, I wanted to get across that there is always hope for a better tomorrow. We must learn to love ourselves before we can love others, and not let our past dictate the rest of our tomorrows.

I also wanted to get through in this story that everyone carries around excess baggage. Aaliyah was probably the most damaged by her past, but Rafa had troubles of his own, a past he didn’t want to face. He had to let Aaliyah inside his own defenses.

Aaliyah has had an abusive past and she was a character I empathized with. What were some sources that informed her character’s backstory?

I watch a show on television called “My 600 Pound Life.” It shocked me how many of these people suffered sexual abuse as children, and the devastating effect it had on their lives. Though I know they have a rough road ahead of them, I always find myself happy and excited when they start to take control of their lives. Aaliyah doesn’t turn to food because of her abuse, but she does put up thick walls. No one who goes through something like this will come out of it without scars. I find some of the worst scars people carry around are those to their psyche, not something others can easily see or understand. It was a challenge to figure out a way for Rafa to get through her defenses, but he couldn’t help her unless he began to understand the depth of the trauma she’d suffered.

What were some goals you set for yourself as a writer with this book?

I wanted to keep the focus on the building love and respect these two characters learn to have for one another, not necessarily the abuse they’d both suffered. I’m also building on a continuing plot that connects my Immortal Warriors series with this one. The Djinn, who are introduced in this story, are enemies of both sets of warriors. Aaliyah has a special connection to the Djinn that will carry over to future books.

What can readers expect in book three of your Raiden Warriors series?

In Claimed by Rafa we are introduced to Samantha, Abby’s vivacious younger sister. Her story will be told in Claimed by Seraphym, book 3 of Raiden Warriors. We first met Seraphym in book 1, Claimed by Nicolai. Seraphym is a dragon shifter whom a lot of my readers appeared to be fascinated with. We begin to learn a lot more about Abby and Samantha’s connection to the dragons in book 3. Samantha was a fun character. When she was younger, she used to dream about the day she would get claimed by a handsome Raiden warrior. Now that she’s grown, she will do everything in her power to escape it, even if it means asking for sanctuary from a dragon clan.

Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website | Amazon | Crimson Cloak Publishing