Legacy of Valor follows Major Liam O’Connor as he leads a fractured alliance into a brutal campaign on a hostile moon—while navigating family, loyalty, and a mysterious Dreamscape power. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

Earth’s recent history contains many memorable battles and warriors to draw inspiration from. The Civil War’s Gettysburg and the Battle of the Ia Drang Valley in Vietnam inspire much of Legacy of Valor. At the Battle of Gettysburg, during the defense of Little Round Top, Colonel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and his regiment were on the extreme left of the Union line with orders to hold at all costs. He used the terrain to his advantage, ultimately driving the Confederates back. As Chamberlain did to win the battle (and possibly the war), Major Liam O’Connor does in Legacy of Valor, using the ground topography to win the Battle of Treespo; outnumbered, he held his position until reinforcements arrived.

Another battle on Earth that took place 100 years later was in the Ia Drang Valley of Vietnam. Lt. Colonel Harold (Hal) Moore faced a numerically superior North Vietnamese force. He coordinated his troops to use the artillery on the ground along with air power to hold their position. Using these same battle tactics, Major O’Connor channeled the spirits of Chamberlain and Moore by remaining outwardly calm in the face of overwhelming odds and thinking quickly. He employed the terrain, artillery, and air power, along with orbital forces, to keep his warriors alive.

In this second novel of the series, Legacy of Valor, the triplets are still children who grew up hearing stories of their father’s exploits. Liam now leads Etursci’s Special Operations Company and is attached to the New Terran Marine Corps’ Third Division to retake the moon called Treespo, orbiting the planet Beta Proximus IV, from Marshal Kergan’s Rebel forces. “No plan survives its first encounter with the enemy,” is an old Marine saying. Minutes after landing on the hostile surface of Treespo, treachery decapitates the division, leaving Liam the senior combat officer. Deception has stripped the Third Division of its support. As forces scramble to assist both sides, Liam must keep the warriors under his command alive.

For personal inspiration, there are science fiction books that use psionics like ESP (Extra Sensory Perception), though I put my unique twist on it. Few Military Science Fiction books explore a person’s consciousness being used outside the body, which is called “Dreamwalking.” While Dreamwalking, a person often has to fight enemy Dreamwalkers. I also drew inspiration from video games such as Halo, in particular with weapons and tactics in space combat.

The Dreamscape adds a unique layer to the story. What narrative challenges came with blending physical and metaphysical combat?

I explore the military use of Extra Sensory Perception (ESP) powers. For such metaphysical talents to be convincing, I must clearly explain the ESP abilities and their associated costs. To do this, I show that the protagonist does not have an overwhelming advantage, or the reader won’t believe they could lose in a battle.

Belief is critical in the Dreamscape. If a person doesn’t believe he or she can do something in the Dreamscape, such as fly or walk through something, they will not be able to do it. Conversely, when someone is attacked in the Dreamscape, weapons directed at them don’t really exist. Therefore, the victim can only be harmed if they believe the weapon can harm them. This makes the ability to disbelieve an important defense against someone’s attack. However, believing and disbelieving require years of training to discipline one’s mind. As Jarek (an expert at Dreamwalking in Dreamscape Warriors Series) said, “the slightest doubt could kill you.”

While moving around, one’s own subconscious uses very little energy, communicating over a great distance or moving outside the body uses energy more rapidly. When a person is exhausted, the Dreamscape seems filled with fog to the point that they might not be able to find their way back to their body.

Related to Dreamwalking is the ability to “Step Out of Time.” This technique enables a warrior to slow the time around him without it affecting him. In battle, they can move very rapidly, giving them a distinct advantage over their enemy for a limited time. However, like Dreamwalking, it uses energy, and a person can be dragged back into regular time once they become tired.

Are there more stories planned in this Dreamscape Universe?

In my books, I explore family dynamics, especially during times of crisis and separation. The triplets and their brother play a major role in the third novel, Promise of Mercy. Aisling, Bayvin, and especially Deirdre, needed to be their father’s daughters. The girls returned home after advanced training in the Finnian Shock Forces. They’ve inherited their father’s marksmanship, his leadership skills, and his ESP powers. However, they aren’t clones of each other. Deirdre is their best shot, and leadership comes naturally to her. Aisling is an explosives expert and pilot. Bayvin specializes in electronic warfare and excels in military intelligence. Their brother is still in his teens but is already a skilled pilot. We also meet Marissa, a former Rebel war criminal who must confront her past once her daughter, Gayla, is born. Marissa goes against Kergan to befriend Liam and return him to his family.

In the fourth book, Addiction of Power, Liam is older. His daughters are now middle-aged. His son, Aidan, is a veteran fighter pilot. The daughter that Liam and his wife Celinia conceived in Promise of Mercy, Tetia, is in her teens and planning to follow her mother’s path as a priestess and healer. The theme of family carries over. Aidan agrees to deliver information to Finnian Intelligence while on a trip with his Great Aunt Máire and sister Tetia when Kergan attacks their ship. After escaping, Marissa and her daughter Gayla, whom the audience meets in Promise of Mercy befriend Aidan and his family. This starts a journey to end a 700-year interstellar civil war. Factions on both sides of the conflict must wrestle with the implications of peace: an end to the bloodshed versus losing power. It also plants the seeds for threats from beyond the Milky Way.

While I was writing the Dreamscape Warriors Series, I realized my central characters had interesting personal life adventures—and I wanted to write about them. These can be major emergencies that only last a matter of minutes, or everyday surprises that take us down unexpected roads. They make up the backstories of each person’s life. This realization started me writing the Sci-Fi Short Book Series based on the characters in the Dreamscape Warriors Novels.

The first short book in the series, Way of Forgiveness, highlights the main character, Liam O’Connor, between the first and second volumes. Liam is not sitting idle between the novels. Things happen in his life that are not covered in the full-length novel, but make a good story in this short book. Here, I focus on Liam’s journey to understand the nature of forgiveness as he struggles through and learns from his archenemy, Licinious.

In the next short book, Evolution of Leadership, Deirdre (one of Liam’s triplet daughters) goes from being a scamp who always leads her siblings to mischief into a military leader. As she goes through her advanced trooper training, Deirdre learns to make responsible decisions when others’ lives are on the line.

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