Too Complex follows an avid gamer whose addiction to his hobby leads him to disengage with the world around him. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

I came up with the idea from watching some of my favorite streamers, I’m not going to name any of them. There’s this one streamer I watch from time to time who often complains about gamers who choose their hobby to become their entire livelihood…which is pathetic. Not for anything productive like content creation or improving decision making skills but to be perceived as a bum or going by gamer vernacular, a “sweat”. Then, from there I’ve caught a glimpse of a reflection of myself after reading about how that first dopamine click will automatically get you hooked on what made it happen the first time around, therefore forming a double-edged sword. Once you receive that first scintillating spark in your eyes making you feel great about yourself, like you have accomplished something peculiar to you because it’s something you’re not immune to. Then from there, you begin to crave more of it because you want to get the same “high” you got from the taste sample. This has happened to me when it comes to video games but also other unhealthy addictions such as social media and alcohol consumption. Hence, the idea behind our antagonist.

What do you find to be the most rewarding aspect of writing humor? The most rewarding?

I think that when it comes to writing, writing humor specifically is my go-to level of expertise especially when social satire is involved. Whenever I’m minding my business, reading, watching YouTube or working my shifts, I come across a lot of problems with certain people that irritate me and I assume that there’s several kindred spirits out there who would agree. Now, this may come off as pessimistic, but the best way to overcome the pessimism would be to shed a little light on it with humor. For example, young generations of today are becoming more and more illiterate, let me create a comic strip where they’re the butt of the joke and because they can’t read it, they won’t get offended. I’m basically taking the negativity and reshaping it to make it more positive and somewhat enjoyable, that’s a reward anyone with a soul would cherish. However, this doesn’t mean that I’m forcing my personal opinions on people against their will like other “satirists” tend to do from time to time. I just try to pinpoint a particular topic that a massive demographic of people would be on the same page with. Not to mention that I try to poke fun at all parties involved on the subject and not be one-sided and biased.

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

The overall themes are what has been said. I wrote this to entertain and to express the pros and cons of gaming. Pros being with our main heroes, Corey and Mavirna as they use their gaming experience to overcome challenges in the pest-infested apartment to evict their tenant, Cody and speaking of Cody, his addiction represents the cons. It showcases that gaming is an artform, an artform that deserves to be held high on the same pedestal as film, theater, television and literature.

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

The next book will not be a part of the same series, however, it’ll have the same tone but with more adult content as opposed to this one which is family-friendly. The name of the next book which I hope will become a series will be called Stale Seed Bed.  A surreal, satirical slapstick comedy about a part-time babysitter watching over a wide variety of troubled youth. It’ll tackle many hot button subjects like dumb internet trends, unproductive side hustles, damaging addictions like gooning etc. I don’t know exactly when it’ll be done considering what I mentioned earlier that I’m still working a day job, but I’ll be working on it as much as possible and you’ll know more about it in advance.

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