Fragments of Light follows a young Archivist named Keela as she uncovers relics of a forgotten civilization while ancient machines awaken beneath the ice. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

Winter. It all started with that. I live where winter is a VERY present concept, and as much of an avid reader as I am, rarely did I ever find a compelling SciFi story that took place in winter or somewhere where winter was the norm. So I figured that starting everything there would be something that could generate a different type of texture to the narrative. And one of those threads is the impact – or I should probably say “impacts” – of climate change. As harsh an environment as the Arctic is, climate change has a disproportionate effect on it; everything seems magnified. So to me, that area would likely be a natural refuge for human civilization should the World go to Hell in a handbasket…

Keela’s emotional journey feels incredibly intimate. Was her character shaped by any personal experiences or themes you wanted to explore?

No personal experience per se. However, being a parent, I see that many young people – and having been one myself – are unsure of the potential in them; of the strength that inhabits them. Sometimes it’s easier to wait for someone else to do what needs to be done, but most of the time, YOU could do it, and you could probably do it better. As for the archivist part, that’s purely projection: I’m a big history nerd! I just find it fascinating – good and bad – how technology throughout the ages shaped humans; how it creates a virtuous (or perverted, depending on where you stand) cycle where humans create technology that changes them and allows them to create more “advanced” or different technology that in turn changes them again, and so on and so forth.

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

Resilience. Ambiguity. Adventure. Friendship. And as corny as it sounds, humor. Because I really do not want to live in a world where even during the worst of the worst we are not able to smile or laugh. Maybe not at what’s happening, but surely at how we deal with ourselves and others.

The machines beneath the ice feel both mythical and scientific. What was your process for designing their nature and purpose?

Well, in Fragments of Light, machines are not generally “under the ice.” Some are, but it’s more because of their purpose, really. In the subsequent books, we see that Keela and Anina need to go outside the safety of their known world – the Arctic – and cross entire continents to continue their quest and get to interact with many different societies, machines, and people.
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Without spoiling too much, let’s just say that machines are left over from a technologically advanced world that existed pre-Fracture. One where geo-engineering was seen as the way to stop/reverse/curb global environmental collapse. Think huge sun reflecting mirrors, carbon catchers, water purifiers, methane gas processors, etc. These would need to be massive, on a scale that would blow your mind, in order to affect the climate of a system as big and complex as the Earth. And you are right, as with anything that is old, eventually they did drift into mythology or quasi-myth.

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