Gathering Storm is a lyrical and emotionally charged fantasy epic where a haunted hero and a fractured world face the rising storm of magic-infused corporate tyranny and buried personal truths. What were some new ideas you wanted to explore in this book that were different from books one and two?

I wanted to highlight something deeply personal—that there are times in life when we feel like we don’t quite belong like we’re out of place. Those moments, those seasons of disconnection, shouldn’t break us. Instead, they can shape us—if we’re willing to look closely enough or be patient enough to find the meaning behind them. In Gathering Storm, I tried to capture that quiet truth: that even pain, confusion, and displacement can serve a greater purpose if we let them.

Chris is a haunted yet determined protagonist. How did his trauma and resilience evolve through the writing process?

From the beginning, I knew that Chris’s journey would take time. Writing books one and two, I was always aware that his development needed to stretch across the entire five-book arc. His resilience had to be earned slowly, not rushed. I made a conscious choice to let his growth unfold at a more deliberate pace than some of the other characters. What I really wanted to reflect was something very human: we don’t all heal or evolve at the same speed—and that’s okay. There’s strength in slow growth. There’s truth in letting characters—and people—take their time.

The kindred tongue and its cadence added a rhythm to the dialogue. What inspired its creation, and how did you approach its development?

Tolkien has always been one of my greatest inspirations. Reading his works was probably the biggest spark behind creating the Kindred Tongue. I’m also multilingual, so I naturally gravitate toward how language shapes thought, culture, and identity. In developing the Kindred Tongue, I immersed myself in the sounds and rhythms of various languages—real and fictional—and imagined how my characters might speak if they came from that world. It became an act of fusion: drawing from linguistic influences and crafting something that felt unique to the Kindred, something that could carry weight, history, and emotion in its very cadence.

Were there any characters whose arcs surprised you as the story unfolded, diverging from your original outline or expectations?

My answer might come as a surprise, but honestly—no. Not at all. Before I even began writing the first book, I had already outlined all the major events, scenes, and character arcs from books 1 to 5. Every decision, every turning point, every emotional beat was planned and documented. There’s a very thick binder on my desk with the full roadmap, and I’m a serious planner when it comes to writing.

That said, what did surprise me wasn’t the plot—it was the emotional impact. Some scenes hit me far harder than I expected. I didn’t anticipate how deeply I’d feel the weight of certain moments until I was actually writing them. Getting teary-eyed while crafting those scenes reminded me I was truly on the right path. It made the journey feel even more meaningful.

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