Les: Hi August , welcome. Please introduce yourself, how long have you been writing, and what kind of books have you written? 

August: I’ve been writing novels for about twelve years. I started when I was thirteen with a science fiction novel which became a trilogy. I published the series, actually. It’s called The Stardrift Trilogy. Dronefall Four, which I’m drafting right now, will be my twelfth finished novel manuscript. Most of the other novels were some flavor of speculative fiction as well. I call myself a speculative author. It’s a nice broad category. I like my freedom.  

 Les: How do you find time to write? 

August: I fight to keep my schedule as open as possible. I don’t want a busy life, so I really try to avoid scheduling a lot of extra stuff. It also helps to write late at night, when no one bothers you. 

 Les: Where do you write?

August: I try to change it up, but I’m almost always at my desk in the corner of my room. I really tune out my surroundings quite a bit when I write, so as long as it isn’t too hideously loud, my environment isn’t that important. 

 Les: Do you have any tips for aspiring authors?

August: I actually have a very specific one. You know that 225,000-word megalodon of a debut you’ve been working on for ten years? It’s time to finish it. If you intend to write more than one book in your lifetime, your debut will not be your best work. It doesn’t have to be. Give yourself room to grow. Finishing a novel and starting another will grow you as a writer like no amount of revision and re-writing ever could. 

 Les: What is your passion? 

August: When it comes to writing, I have a passion for breaking the mold for Christian fiction. The vast majority of Christian fiction can be categorized as inspirational romance. No offence to anybody who loves that genre, but I think, in the world Christians are living in today, that’s a shame.  There is so much power in the gift of art that I think it’s kind of too bad we mostly use it to satisfy our emotional sweet-tooth. I don’t have a lot of faith in the world-changing power of clean, uplifting romance. I think the Christian audience deserves something more challenging and more spiritually potent. I’ve asked God to use my art to deliver it to them.   

Les: Do you have any other interests? 

August: Actually, I recently wrote down a list of my major interests and was able to group them into nine different categories. But I can consolidate them into three here. Outside of writing I love art, science, and music. I’ve been into art considerably longer than I’ve pursued writing. I mainly draw, paint and do pyrography. Some photography too, but I honestly don’t really know what I’m doing.  My love of science is what drives me to write sci-fi. I read a lot of science non-fiction in my spare time, and I think it has influence on my vocabulary and descriptive style in my fiction and poetry. Astronomy’s my main thing, but I’m also an amateur entomologist and bird-watcher. I tend to collect things: rocks, shells, feathers, fossils, snakeskins….  I actually majored in music in college. I did a lot of singing in German. Now days, most of my musical skills have been channeled into Irish tin whistle playing. I need to finish recording that CD.  

 Les: What is your latest book? 

August: The book I’m releasing right now is the third (and so far, the best in my opinion) of the six-book dystopian series Dronefall. 

Les: Does it fit into a specif genre? 

August: I’m calling the Dronefall series dystopia overall. It could actually be more specifically labeled cyberpunk, but some of the installments feel more like cyberpunk than others.  

Les: Who will enjoy your book? 

August: That’s an interesting question. I’ve been surprised by the motley crew that’s enjoyed the Dronefall series so far. I would recommend it to Christian older young adults, male and female, who are looking for a unique, believable dystopian series. It honestly isn’t anything like The Hunger Games, and certainly not the Left Behind series, so don’t go in expecting that. The plot is very complex and it almost feels like a big drawn-out mystery in a sci-fi setting, so I would recommend it for patient types who enjoy both of those genres.   

 Les: What sets your book apart? 

August: The Dronefall series really looks at the current situation in the post-Christian Western world and calls it what it is, while at the same time being an entertaining ride through a near-future sci-fi world full of creepy and awesome technology. I’ve seen other Christian dystopias confront persecution that looks more like it did in the early days of the church, or like it does in the East. But Dronefall is addressing a world that is basically what Western Christians face today—only the hostility toward Christianity is a little louder and more fully integrated in society. I think readers are going to have their eyes opened to exactly the anti-Christian attitudes they come across on a daily basis. That’s going to be a very compelling experience, and one readers don’t often get from Christian fiction.      

Les: Thanks so much being a guest on my website. All the best with your book and writing career,