Pandemic Hacker 2 follows a stubborn and resilient woman who transforms her body to be unrecognizable to her enemies; she and her AI partner work to take down an extortion and trafficking group. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

The original story idea was to have a hacker who figured out something significant that was part of the plot. It was my first novel, and learning about the process, I changed the plot. The original technical idea is part of the story and subplot, but not the main plot. I also wanted to create a character who wasn’t like the hackers on TV (click, click, click, I’m in.) There is depth and detail to the technology that a group of readers doesn’t get anywhere else. Then, to make it enjoyable, what if she found something, a group that was hidden, that operated outside of the law because they had corrupted the groups that could stop them (FBI). How could she navigate that kind of world? The pandemic setting helps and hurts in different ways, allowing me to present the reader with various viewpoints about our world.

Martha is a woman with strength and determination who refuses to give up. What do you think makes her a valuable and worthy heroine?

She is confident in her ability to do the special operations stuff. She is confident in her hacking, especially with Zoe’s help. She has a compulsion to clean. She grew up poor and won’t spend money on herself, even though she has millions. Partially because of the pandemic, she only has one read friend. She can’t just make friends with new people and expose them to the killer organization. She is learning and growing in Pandemic Hacker 2. By the end of the book, there are several people now part of the group fighting the bad guys. She is looking forward to living again, not just surviving. The ending aims to convey the completion of the journey that began with her asking if all the pain and being alone are worth it.

I find that authors sometimes ask themselves questions and let their characters answer them. Do you think this is true for your characters?

Yes. But my questions are sometimes odd to others. How could someone travel across the country in a few days without being tracked? How would you send a specific, untraceable message to the FBI that you are sure they will see and notice? What evil actions and behaviors would motivate people to help a stranger if they knew helping would be dangerous for themselves?

Where does the next book in the series take the characters?

The first two books dealt with the evil group and revolved around corrupt authorities. The idea for the next book is to explore cleaning up an organization that could be of help. That could start to turn the tide. Who can you trust, who can’t be corrupted? Can you help the good guys so they can help you?

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