The Boy, a Dragon, and the Cave of Shadow follows a young boy and a small green dragon who go on a journey through a perilous cave facing challenges and forming alliances along the way as they battle The Shadow. What was the inspiration that created the fantastic journey these characters go on?  

The main inspiration was my son. He’s currently undergoing treatment for leukemia, and throughout his treatment journey he has had so many moments where he was incredibly brave! I likened what he was going through to the burden carried by Frodo in the Lord of the Rings, and wanted to write a fantasy metaphor for pediatric cancer treatment. It was important for me to draw on that, but then pull in inspiration from Kingdom Hearts and Dungeons & Dragons to help tell it. It was a very cathartic experience. And aside from my son’s fight, I also wanted to give other kids, or even adults, that are going through the same thing an easily read book that lets them know they’re not alone.

What were some ideas that were important for you to personify in your characters?  

There is a lot that the main character goes through, and he’s portrayed as a young boy. I wanted to make sure that this boy made mistakes, displayed a wide variety of emotions, and was filled with doubt. He is guided by a small dragon throughout the journey, who I really just wanted to make fun and quirky, but also wise and sagely. The other characters and what they present to the main character are very representative of cancer treatment. It was their interactions with the boy and how he reacted to them and what each of them represented that really tells the story beneath the story.

Is there any moral or idea that you hope readers take away from the story?  

That no matter how dark or terrible things appear, to find the light. There is always light. Trust in that light. And sometimes it takes reading a book or talking to a friend to find a bit of bravery. Or maybe it takes listening to the wise words of a quirky dragon. 

What is the next book that you’re working on and when can your fans expect it out? 

Before this story and everything that inspired it, I was in the middle of writing a fantasy series with my good friend, Aaron Bunce, called The Dunes of Aelaron. We still have the third installment to write, entitled The Wrath of the Undergods. I also have a science fiction project I’m working on that I hope to have out next year.

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