Beyond the Bukubuk Tree follows a young Jewish doctor and a Catholic WWI veteran who are assigned to the same battalion and form an unlikely bond. What inspired the setup of your story?

I wanted to convey two emotional truths in the novel: the beauty of Rabaul, which has a quality of enchantment as it nestles between active volcanoes and lush green flora; and the conflict between love and tradition during wartime. An uncle I never met served in that battalion, Lark Force, and his service inspired me to write Beyond. Family anecdotes suggest that he was conflicted about his sexuality although we don’t actually know. I felt a deep connection to an unspoken pain I saw in photographs of hm. Sharing this truth in a fictionalized character allows readers to connect with characters on a deeper level. I knew that in mainland New Guinea at this time, many incidents of male-male intimacy between soldiers were investigated by the Army. Like Alan Turing, gay soldiers gave their all to their country. It’s time to honor them.

Jake and Alex both have secrets they keep hidden and struggle with their emotions while remaining strong as the battles continue. There was a lot of time spent crafting the character traits in this novel. What was the most important factor for you to get right in your characters?

That they started from one way of functioning in society that repressed vital parts of themselves. With Jake, the orthodox Jewish doctor, it was his desires. With Whipple, his childhood and war traumas gave him a nihilistic view of humanity, stifling his capacity for hope and generosity. Their deepening bond in the crucible of war transformed them.

What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?

First, Lark Force, the lone battalion of volunteers defending Rabaul, was under-resourced and abandoned by the Australian Government. Documents revealing that the government never had a plan to reinforce or extract them were concealed for 50 years. But the soldiers gradually realized their plight as peril approached. I wanted to bring to life those moments of revelation. Fiction seemed like a better genre for me than non-fiction.

Second, to convey the diverse population of Rabaul in 1941-2: Australian administrators and soldiers; a solid community of Chinese merchants; and the majority indigenous Tolai inhabitants. These communities’ cultures were opaque to each other but they were interdependent. I wanted characters from the different communities to have a voice in this war between white and Japanese colonists that upended all their lives. It was a risk to do this, but I felt compelled. I love Rabaul!

What is the next book that you are working on, and when will it be available?

I have a sequel to The Reversible Mask: An Elizabethan Spy Novel in rough shape but no scheduled release. Believe me, Literary Titan will be the first to know. My shorter articles on a variety of topics are likely to come out first. But thank you and readers can stay in touch with me via my website.

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