Eruption 2085 follows a man in the middle of a brutal war where allegiances are questioned, brothers are lost, and one brother is in the seat of power they set out to destroy. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

The setup for Eruption 2085 is the result of combining the events of the real world with the journey of the characters. We were shown a lot of the worst in 2020, between massive outbreaks, police brutality, questionable politics and a seemed regression in race relations, and we see all of this addressed in Ignition 2084. Eruption takes all of the struggle and social turmoil of its predecessor and amplifies it through the characters’ experiences. John and Brian are set on a collision course as their personal ideologies are tested through the nature of war. It really strives to ask the question of what happens to the ally when the battle gets hard? Will they stand and fight by the side of the oppressed, like Bill and Kincaid, or will they fight for themselves and subject their “friends” to yet more longstanding oppression?

Your character development is one of the highlights of your novels. What character did you enjoy writing for? Was there one that was more challenging to write for?

All of my characters are very fun to write for, and they all have a different perspective on what happens throughout the story. If I had to pick one, though, I think that John is always going to be my favorite to write for just because I think we see the most from him. We’ve seen him as the military leader, the husband, the father, a friend, an enemy, and so much more, and we’ve seen how frantically and urgently he protects the ones he loves. At the same time, Brian is a lot of fun, too, since he grows more unhinged as the story goes on. I think that both of them and their relationship in particular poses a unique challenge just because they create a unique dichotomy of perspectives.

I find the world you created in this novel brimming with possibilities. Where did the inspiration for the setting come from, and how did it change as you were writing?

It’s always fun to look at a map and decide where to go at a moment’s notice, and what I found out during the telling of this story is that the same is true when you want to plan an epic battle scene. There are scenes in this book that take place in Tennessee, North Carolina, Mississippi, Arizona, etc., and all of them are broken compared to what they look like today. Each scene shows a few actual landmarks that would resonate with people who actually live there, but it is still a very fictionalized version of those cities and states. The interesting thing is that this hasn’t changed too much since the battle scene in the ruins of the White House from Ignition.

What is the next book that you are working on, and when can your fans expect it to be out?

After working on a dystopian science-fiction duology for the last two years, I thought to shift gears and work on something a little less research-heavy. To that end, I actually just finished writing a Pan-African Fantasy novel entitled The Word of Y’Neshu: Heart of the Ijeya, and I am extremely excited about the series and the languages that will spring up from it. As for a release date, though, I have no idea yet. For any fans waiting to see what happens next, all I can say is just keep an eye out on my platforms for when the announcement drops!

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