Protectors of the Light Crown centers around a gamer whose life is forever changed when a character from his dreams manifests in real life. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

I am operating on the concept that dreams are gateways into alternate realities. Whether or not that is seen as true or false in our human level of understanding doesn’t matter. In my novel, Protectors, Dexter Park initially struggles with the sudden strangeness of his own life after discovering that his dream experiences are indeed real ones, and not just figments of his sleeping imagination. When he accidentally yanks Tickle out of her own reality while asleep one night, it is only the beginning of a very wild ride.

How long did it take you to imagine, draft, and write the world your characters live in?

Using the “plotter” method, I outlined my characters and chapters in a very linear fashion. I’m so dedicated to the bullet-point process that Matt Posner of the School of Fiction podcast told me he’d never seen any other writer take it to such an extreme. I design my characters from their grandparents on down and tailor the story to their personal development. Once I’m sure of who and what I’m dealing with, I come up with general ideas for every chapter. Then, I fine-tune those chapters into detailed pieces and begin writing, starting with Chapter One, until I’m done and ready for rewrites and edits. That process took me ten years of stopping and starting as the rollercoaster of life got in the way. Book 2 won’t take nearly as long.

What do you think were some of the defining moments in Dexter’s development?

This is a story of superheroes in a story sprinkled with high fantasy. And superhero origins usually involved “daddy issues” or their dealing with losing parental figures, etc. Dexter is no different there, and a large part of his story arc involves deep insecurities from physical challenges and having to come to terms with having lost his mom and dad. When he joins The Protectors as a team of super-powered individuals pledged to take down an ancient evil, he’s its least effective member. I dedicated chapters specifically toward Dexter seeing himself in a better light.

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

As I said, it took me ten years to write Protectors, but that won’t happen again. If Book Two takes more than five years, I’d be very surprised. I’m shooting for 3 years. I have other books in me, ready to go from paper to screen, but Book Two in this series trilogy is my baby. I’m presently working on that outline.

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