As a kid, Percy Jackson was one of the series I first fell in love with. I was captivated by the way Rick Riordan took a polytheistic Greek religion and turned it into a magic system. Growing up in a very Christian household, I started thinking about how I could do something similar with the Bible. I ultimately decided to turn the creation story into a magic system. Once I started running with that idea, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had to write it. Eventually, my freshman year of college, I decided to give it a shot. Now, a decade later, I nearly have the Trilogy complete.

My most recent project is the fourth and final installment of the Adamic Trilogy, The Reviving: Part Two. It’s been a wild ride, and I’m so excited to finish my debut series. The size alone has been a bit of a challenge. The trilogy will be weighing in at over 500,000 words. I’ve been writing it while simultaneously going to medical school, so I’ve been pretty pressed for time, but nothing will stop me from finishing what I started.

Both you could say. Once I complete the The Adamic Trilogy, I plan on writing The Taste of Diamond. It’s a Mistborn-inspired Sci-fi standalone. Then, I have another fantasy series planned, a historical fantasy inspired by America’s colonization with a dash of soul-mate magic if you really must know.

Plotter, to the extreme. I like to have a chapter by chapter outline before I write a single word. For me, it’s often the convoluted conclusions of a story that motivate me most. Without having some implication of how it all ends, I doubt I’d find the motivation to start any story.

One of my favorite aspects of fantasy is its ability to critique the real world. Fantasy readers want to be immersed in a new world. Most of them are looking to study systematic prejudice or sexism; however, when reading about a magical realm, they might just find those same messages hidden between the paragraphs of dragons and spells. The impossible nature of fantasy creates a disguise—a scoop of ice cream to mask the distasteful pill of reality. In short, authors have the ability to introduce society-altering topics to readers who may not even be looking for it, and I think that is pretty amazing.

Frankly, I just try to muscle through. Occasionally, if I get stuck in a scene, I’ll jump ahead to a scene I’m more excited for. I find that skipping to my most anticipated scenes keeps me going, even in the face of writer's block. Otherwise, a little caffeine and a comfy couch are all I need.

This is a cliche, but write what you want to read. Even if you’re into some pretty niche stuff, you’ll find an audience. Writing requires a lot of motivation, and if you don’t love your story, odds are, you won’t finish it. Second, don’t be afraid to suck. We all gotta suck before we ascend. Just start writing. You might just surprise yourself how quickly your story progresses into something you’re proud of.

Villains, without a doubt. I’m well aware that sociopaths exist (future psychiatrist here), but they aren’t the kind of villains I’m drawn to write. I want a villain my readers can relate to, with a cause that even I could consider justified. I tried my best to make such a villain for The Adamic Trilogy. As for the second part of your question, I put a pretty liberal helping of myself into all of my characters. But that said, I consider myself to be quite expansive and adaptable (and especially humble). I pick and choose the most interesting aspects of myself and mix them with personality traits of my friends and family. Matt (my male protagonist) is probably the most unfiltered reflection of myself, but everyone, from Judy to Zane, has little sprinklings of Devin within them.