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1. What does your schedule look like when you're writing?
My schedule for writing is actually pretty hectic. I just kinda squeeze in a writing session when I'm feeling inspired, which can be at any moment. By working that way I rarely feel writer's block because I just write until the inspiration fades then stop and come back later. Working that way works best for me; although, I tend to procrastinate when I've reached a fairly complex idea because I know it's gonna be a particularly long writing session to fine tune the idea.
2. How did you get your start in writing?
I knew I wanted to write in high school during my senior year when I wrote my senior Memoirs and realized 95% of the things I wrote were made up because I have a bad memory. That inspired me to go to college for writing; unfortunately, my school didn't offer a creative writing major, so I started to get an English degree before realizing that it would be more effective to just start writing and let my failures be my guide to my success.
3. Let's talk about your book WatchDogs Abnormal Beginnings. Can you give us a brief synopsis?
Sure, WatchDogs Abnormal Beginnings, at its core, is a story of revenge and learning to let go. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic future where 99% of the planet long since died off from an apocalyptic level event. The planet over a long period of time managed to repopulate itself but living in a very different far more harsh planet. As generations passed the people began to evolve and even gain abilities through mutation in their genes. It's a rather new phenomenon, so even though it affects a large group of people, they are called Abnormals. Being that such a large part of the population died off all at once, a lot of knowledge and history was lost in an instant. So instead of researching, they are shunned, and they have to form their own pseudo families in guilds to feel accepted. My story begins with Cole, the leader of a guild, after he's been betrayed by his brother, Marshall, and beaten to near death and exiled from his guild for something he didn't do. His power-hungry brother takes it over, and he must cross nations on this desolate planet to get the one thing he thirsts for more than anything—revenge. But will the allies he makes persuade him from his blood lust, can they or is he too far gone?
4. Where did you get the idea for the book?
I got the idea from a bunch of smaller ideas I've had over the years. You see, I love superheroes, powers, political intrigue, large open worlds and stories about surviving desolate planets. Add in the fact that I like coming up with complex corners to write myself out of and the story nearly wrote itself. You see I watch a lot of TV, so inspiration is constantly hitting me, and I guess in my head I took aspects from my favorite shows/movies like: X-Men, One Piece, Game of Thrones, and Mad Max. The worlds these shows formed swirled around in my head until the idea formed and bits of each were used to construct the setting. Everything else was a brainstorming session or three away from forming.
5. Part of the population has developed abnormal abilities. What kind of abilities are we talking about?
Well, all kinds of abilities really. There is Nerve Manipulation that allows someone to control how much pain they feel. There is Telekinesis, Body Transformation, Mind Control, Persuasion, Ice Creation and Manipulation, Reality Warping, Super Strength. All strong abilities, all with their own sets of downsides. There are also Abominations, babies born with too much of a mutation that are born deformed with scary strong abilities.
6. Do you identify more closely with any one of the characters?
I try to give every character a small piece of me, but when creating Cole, I took a larger portion of my personality and gave it to him. I mean who doesn't want to be the main character in their own grand adventure.
7. What was the hardest part of writing the book for you?
Procrastination, I get distracted easily, and being that I write whenever I'm inspired, I have a rather loose schedule. So, sometimes I have to actively convince myself to turn the TV off, stop watching other people's beautiful creations and form my own.
8. What's next for you?
Ideally, this book does well, and I can continue the WatchDog series as I have big plans for where this story can go. However, I do also have plans for other books both in the fantasy and sci-fi realm, so hopefully, there is a lot of writing in my future. After all, this is just my first book.
I like to end with fun questions.
9. What's your favorite way to spend your free time?
I love going to the movies, bingeing a series, hanging with friends, playing chess, watching football, or just playing PlayStation; all of which help me relax my mind.
10. Who do you look up to most?
Celebrity wise I'd say people like The Rock, Kevin Hart, or KevOnStage, all African American men who have a crazy strong work ethic. When it comes to writing, I'd say Eiichiro Oda because very few people can create such a vast, vibrant world inhabited by such compelling characters (his work is in Manga form but it's no less awe-inducing). And on the role model front, I'd say my Pops who unfortunately passed away in November of 2021. He was a strong, loving, and compassionate man who I model myself after.
11. If you could win an Olympic medal for any sport, real or fake, what would it be?
Football. I love watching it but never actually played, and it's one of my bigger regrets. It's a team sport, so I'd be sharing the medal if it ever got into the Olympics. But, I think that would be cool.
12. What household chore do you hate most?
Cleaning dishes, especially if they've sat for days.
