Literary Titan Author Interview – March 8, 2025

Pope Joan

Myth Or Reality

Pope Joan follows a woman who defies all odds when she disguises herself as a man and rises through the ranks in the Catholic church and secures the position of Pope. Where did the idea for this novel come from?

I came across an article about the myth or reality of a female who became pope. Her real identity as a woman was revealed when her water broke in public, and she began to deliver a baby. According to the legend, she was stoned to death as she was about to enter one of the churches in Rome. I started to imagine how a woman back in those days, when a woman was heavily restricted, could climb the ladder through the church to become pope. What was her back story? My curiosity soon took over, and I did extensive research on the times in which she lived and the struggles she had to endure to succeed and become Pope Joan.

Can you share a little about the research that went into putting your book together?

The Internet offered a wide range of great resources to help me locate specific materials: timelines, biographies of people who lived during the age that I was interested in, places that housed certain religious orders, and the ongoing conflicts of the age. Generally speaking, I have had a fascination with the Middle Ages and now have a small reference library dedicated to the Crusades and the Reconquista.

What was your favorite moment in Joan’s story? Is there one scene that resonates with you?

I was most touched by Joan’s time in prison when she was awaiting execution. What was going through her mind? Surely, the uncertainty of being executed or not weighed heavily and gave her a feeling of dread. But also she thought about the safety and well-being of her child. No matter how old children are, their parents want to know they are safe.

Will your next book be historical fiction? What are you currently preparing for your fans?

Literary Titan Author Interview – Nov. 13, 2024

The Little Dutch Girls

These Courageous Women

The Little Dutch Girls follows an 82-year-old woman who is being interviewed about her, her sister, and her friend’s role in the Dutch Resistance. What inspired you to tell this story?

Reading a random article about these courageous women on the death of Freddie Oversteegen sparked my curiosity in the Dutch Resistance during World War II. In my research, I learned that the two sisters, Freddie and Truus, were brought up by their mother who believed in the workers’ paradise and taught her daughters to believe in that as well. Although at the beginning of the war, the communists didn’t participate in the fragmented Dutch Resistance due to Stalin’s alliance with Hitler. The girls tried to defend their nation after Hitler defeated their armed forces.

When Freddie was recruited to be interviewed for a documentary about the resistance, through flashbacks I tried to imagine Freddie at age fifteen when she joined the armed effort with her sister, Truus, and their good friend, Hannie Schaft. How did they feel? How did they muster the courage to go boldly forward? At the beginning, they were couriers spreading news, but they graduated into guerrilla fighters quickly. What interested me were the struggles these patriots endured after the war because of their wartime affiliations and work in the resistance. Freddie preferred to keep the past where it belonged, while her sister became an artist and educator and was not shy from discussing the war.

Literary Titan Author Interview – July 26, 2024

Matson’s Case No. 2

Tap Your Emotions & Write Sincerely

Matson’s Case No.2 follows a detective leading the investigation of five complex murder cases who discovers a government coverup operation in the process. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story? 

Reading about Operation Paper Clip and how the United States government brought many German scientists, Nazi intelligence officers, and members of death camp personnel here. This open door policy also was extended to members of Unit 731, the Imperial Japanese Army’s biological weapons unit. I used my character, Robert Matson, to peel back the layers of this onion. In the process, Matson reveals how the Agriculture Lab off the coast of Lyme, Connecticut, became the epicenter for Lyme’s disease and other infectious diseases that have been diagnosed in this area. Members of the U. S. Senate were informed about the tick colony at this facility and how the insects had escaped, but they took no action. Lab leaks do not happen only in China.

Literary Titan Author Interview – June 16 2024

Animal Court

How Animals Would Treat a Human

Animal Court follows a group of animals in an African jungle who put a human man on trial for extensive environmental damage. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

There are so many court shows on television: Judge Judy, Divorce Court, and Judge Steve Harvey. What if animals had the same playing field? What if they were able to take a person or company to court for the damages they had incurred against nature? That question began my journey into writing Animal Court.

I was also inspired by a true African tribal practice. When one tribesman misbehaved, the others did not punish him. Instead, they gathered in the center of the tribal territory, formed a circle, and asked their fellow member to stand in the center. One by one, the tribesmen reminded the stray of the good he had done throughout his life, eventually allowing him to come to terms that he merely strayed.

We wondered how animals would treat a human if they could put one on trial. If they won the case, would they drag him into the jungle and tear him apart? This whetted our imagination and got us started.

Literary Titan Author Interview – Dec. 31, 2023

The Apocryphal of Lazarus

Waiting for the Second Coming

The Apocryphal of Lazarus follows Lazarus, who, after rising from the dead, travels the world, plies different trades, and falls in love over and over again while trying to find purpose in life as he awaits the return of Christ. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

There are many legends indicating where Lazarus of Bethany was buried, including Cyprus or Kilton. In Jewish tradition and in the writings of Maimonides in his Mishneh, Torah spoke of the resurrection at the end of times where the souls of those who had died inhabit other bodies, a Jewish acceptance of reincarnation. Reform Judaism rejected the idea of the resurrection in the Pittsburg Platform of 1885. I believe that resurrection means that you, like Christ, cannot die and that Lazarus is walking the earth, waiting for the second coming. What does this affect a human being? How do you cope with seeing loved ones grow old and die? How do you deal with changing your looks to disguise perpetual youthful looks? Is this a blessing or a curse? The Apocryphal of Lazarus involved my exploration into this character and how circumstances molded him and helped him to cope with the grief of loss. To see a wife, a son, a daughter, and grandchildren grow and change, then finally wither and die must have been overwhelmingly sad, yet his faith kept him moving forward.

Literary Titan Author Interview – October 2, 2023

Brazzaville

Unlikely Friends

Brazzaville: A Sequel to Casablanca picks up where the iconic film ends with the memorable main characters fighting for their lives in the midst of Nazi-occupied Europe. What was the inspiration that drove you to share your vision of this sequel with readers?

First of all, I have loved Casablanca ever since I first saw it, and I never tire seeing it again and again. My curiosity finally got the better of me, and I decided to explore what happens after the movie ends with Rick Blaine saying to Louis Renault, as they walk into the fog, “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” Where does such an unlikely friendship lead these two men? I wanted to see what the war might do to them and how they face life and death challenges.

Sure, Ilsa and her husband escape to Portugal, but Lisbon is an open city where English and Nazi spies work the streets. A big catch like Victor Laszlo might escape spies in Morocco but not so in Lisbon. Rick’s obligation to the people who helped him in Casablanca drives him to forge alliances with the French Resistance and free his friend Sam, Mister Ferrari, and others. Through their efforts in North Africa, we witness as this dedicated group of fighters keeps the Straits of Hercules open and helps to turn the tide of the war in North Africa and beyond. The concerted efforts of this close-knit family of friends help to thwart the advance of the Third Reich.

Literary Titan Author Interview – June 11, 2023

An Infectious Game

We Are All Flawed

An Infectious Game follows a pseudohermaphrodite microbiologist who uses her extensive intelligence to commit murder. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

Z came to mind during a troubling period in my life when the world was collapsing around me. I needed to find an outlet for my anger, and I came upon Zoe, a troubled human being misdiagnosed at birth, bullied, brought up by two uncaring parents. She becomes part of a child molester’s twisted fantasy, and she doesn’t want to be a victim.

How did the idea for the character’s motives come to fruition for you?

Zoe’s curiosity leads her to a stash under her molester’s house where she finds the tools she needs to further her education. Not to be bullied, not to feel less than what she is, yet always striving for excellence. That has been my life goal, too, and my desire to achieve it keeps me moving forward.