Series - Rapture Trilogy #1

Genre - YA Dystopian

Published - August 21, 2011

Publisher - Pear Jam Books

The Rapture has occurred - the end of the world. The faithful have risen up to Heaven. Those left behind are in a living hell. Armed only with his swords and his wit, a teenage boy wanders this post-apocalyptic world alone, separated forever from everyone he loves. Cursed by his demonic heritage, he must now embark on a quest that will take him across the US to the City of Angels.

Excerpt

“What was it like?” he asked when his mouth was no longer full. “I mean, long ago.”

“Not too different to now,” she said.

“You humans – sorry, even part- humans – never seem to change much. I watched when Noah loaded up the Ark. I watched what became of those who were left behind. The misery, the anger, the terror. Some things don’t change. Take these times for instance. Humans knew He would return at some point – in fact, some of you even tried to predict his return - and yet most did nothing about it. Carried on living their lives, murdering, stealing, cheating. Fighting wars, killing innocents. He tried to warn you. Think about the amount of natural disasters that have occurred in the last few years. Earthquakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, flooding, plague and pestilence. Animals mysteriously dying in their thousands. No-one paid any attention, and now look what’s happened to them.”

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As well as being a writer, he is an elementary school teacher. Career highlights include being in the army, gaining a Masters in Archaeology, owning a comic shop, becoming obsessed with martial arts and oriental weapons and turning down a job at the British museum. 

His YA novel RAPTURE (the first in the Rapture trilogy) was released Sept 1st, 2011 by Pear Jam books. RAPTURE is a dystopian/post-apocalyptic story about the end of the world featuring demons, angels and a half demon protagonist caught in the middle. RAPTURE was shortlisted for the Sir Julius Vogel award for best Youth novel. 

Book 2, TRIBULATION, was released in December, 2012. The final book, APOCALYPSE, will be out early 2013. 

On a personal note, he is married to Rose, has a son (Jack) and two border terriers, Whiskey and Raffles. He loves fishing, reading, football (soccer) and single malt Whiskeys.

Rapture Trilogy is different to the other books you have previously written...what was your inspiration for this trilogy? 

I wanted a post-apocalyptic setting that hadn’t been done to death (‘scuse the pun). Even though I love zombies and vampires, I wanted to write something that had more of a fresh appeal. I’d read the Left Behind series years ago and using the concept of the Rapture as a stepping off point started to percolate. The Left Behind series puts the characters in a contemporary setting. I wanted to tie in my love of fantasy with that and have a far more surreal backdrop. Plus, I love anything with angels and demons and end of the world scenarios and I scenarios where you think ‘what would I do in that situation?’ My wife and I often have conversations (probably as a result of watching too many zombie movies) about what we would do if we found ourselves in this position. How would we survive? Where would we go? Who would be with us? I also like stories about survival and one person or a small group fighting against a world gone mad. 

You noted that you've written both non-fiction and fiction childrens books, what's the difference in writing techniques between the two? 

Which is the harder to write? With non-fiction, I'm often given a brief and told to write about a certain subject for a certain age group using a certain text type or genre. For example, it might be a description of the Amazon river for 10 year olds. I'm usually given a target word count too. Because it is so specific, I find non-fiction writing like this much easier. And you're also dealing with hard facts which are not open to dispute. Fiction writing is so much harder. You're creating a world from scratch but you also want it to sound authentic so you still have to do your research. 

You've written several books in different genres MG, Adult and now YA Paranormal, what is your favorite genre to write? And why? 

Definitely YA paranormal (or dystopian or post-apocalyptic). It suits my writing style. I'm not terribly wordy and not overly fond of writers who indulge themselves with unnecessary description or metaphors and similes. The age group appeals to me because I remember the impact books had on me when I was a teenager - how rich and vivid they were and how exciting it was to find a new author. 

Being a Full-time elementary school teacher, are any of your characters based/inspired by any of your students? (No need to name names LOL) 

A little. Everyone is influenced by their experiences and encounters with others. Some of the earlier encounters between Sam and Aimi when they were young are based a little on watching how children interact with each other but nothing specific. 

You previously did a Masters in Archaeology. Tell us one interesting Archaeology fact? 

Archaeology isn't as glamorous as you might think. You spend a lot of time digging without finding anything. In winter, the ground is extremely hard and then the excavations have an annoying habit of filling with water when it rains. You also spend an inordinate amount of time in the lab counting objects, measuring and cataloging. Use wear analysis was one of my favorite things to do though. You make your own stone tools and test them on a variety of substances (wood, bone, skin etc) and examine the wear on the edges under a microscope. Then, when you find a stone artifact and compare the edge against the one you made, you can be fairly confident about what a stone tool was used for. I like that forensic element. Maybe I should've been a forensic archaeologist. 

There's a child that's just not into reading, a reluctant reader...how would you describe The Rapture Trilogy to convince them to read it? 

It's like a movie, game or graphic novel in your head. I watch a lot of movies and read a lot of comics so I'm very visual. The scenes are like what you'd see in a movie, game or comic - just in your own head. Lots of action, swordplay, demons. Imagine what it would be like as a game. Visualize yourself fighting demons and moving through the various stages. 

You're stranded in an island and can only take one character from Rapture, who would it be and why? 

Easy. Sam. Not only is he very tough, he has also got all the necessary survival skills - hunting, lighting fires, finding shelter. I certainly wouldn't starve with him around. 

The Rapture is occurring now, you have 5 mins to pack and leave your home, what would you do? 

Grab my wife, son and two dogs and head for the marina. My friend has a boat and there are plenty of islands in the harbor. He's a hunter too, so he's got a lot of guns. I've already talked to him about this. 

What would you take? 

My bug out bag (haven't got one yet but I have been watching 'Preppers'). In it would be a medical kit, fishing kit, water purification tablets. Some dehydrated food and a gas cooker. Probably some weapons - a necessary precaution. 

How do you combat writer's block? 

Haven't really had a problem with this as yet (touch wood). I have lots of ideas, all of the time. I constantly think 'what if' when I'm reading or watching the news. I also have pretty vivid dreams. 

photos courtesy of Legacy Swords