Using Your Superpower follows a woman thrust into the office of Secretary of State struggling with her own self-doubt and who finds that empathy is a mighty weapon in even the most challenging circumstances. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

I’m not too sure of my actual inspiration for creating this literary life of Amelia Castro. I have been inspired by the fact that Madeline Albright, Condoleeza Rice, and Hillary Clinton all were placed in that role, and in my opinion, each did an excellent job. Adding that factor to my conviction that the Secretary of State is perhaps the most important political post with the most difficult responsibility of all Cabinet positions.

Amelia Castro is an incredibly relatable character. What was your process for creating her traits and dialogue?

I wanted her to be successful in this role and therefore, just like the President selecting her, would have to select the most qualified person to do the job. However, the most important safeguard for Amelia was to have a support team and therefore I created the Fearless Five who would advise and protect her to the utmost degree.

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

First, what was to be the Superpower, and I selected Empathy as the most important power that would guide my characters and the government agencies they led. Next, who were to be the other characters that guided Amelia and where did they all receive the Guidance and knowledge to provide the advice they imparted.

Can we look forward to more fiction from you soon? What are you currently working on?

Yes! I am currently near finishing a very ambitious Vision Quest fiction novel that follows a middle-aged man who decides to trek by foot throughout the country of Belize. He was inspired by the actions of Shirley McClaine when she performed the trek though the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in Spain. There is no specific connection between my character’s journey and that of Shirley McClaine except for each person’s need to accomplish a trek that would satisfy a spiritual lack in each person that needed to be internally resolved. My character is more aggressive in attempting to reach a certain spiritual advancement, but both have that in mind for their trek.

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