What inspired you to write this book?
I always thought spies were so cool and sort of wanted to be one without actually being one (if that makes any sense) hahaha. I’m a rule follower and someone who believes in justice and shutting down the bullies. Helping people is a true passion of mine. I’ll never forget the angelic, golden people who stood up for me over the years. That’s what a spy does. I was born and molded to write the part.
What can we expect from you in the future?
I am extremely excited to announce that, “Perception and Deception III” is almost completed, and you can certainly expect to see it being released within the next few months! I absolutely need beta readers to read and review, so if you want to read a free digital copy of it before it actually comes out, email me at tesoroseries@gmail.com! It will be first come, first serve. You don’t have to have read the first two books to read the third. You can also expect to see some new projects coming up, including a YA book. I’m also planning out some children’s picture books as well.
Do you have any “side stories” about the characters?
I was literally just thinking about this the other day. I do have all sorts of side and background stories for my characters that aren’t in the book that I save for later. I’ve thought about writing a short story for Juro’s character. His background is a bit mysterious from the reader’s point of view, but coming from the author, I can assure you he has an action packed, dangerous background that’s just waiting to have an origin short story or book of its own at some point.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in, “Perception and Deception?”
So our main character is Felix (later known as Faith, her real name, from the end of book one and on). Felix Jaynes is a special agent for the Real Life Immersion Program (also known as RLIP). She’s a young, twenty-one year old, who has been an undercover agent for years already. She started young and is incredibly passionate about her career. However, she experiences a devastatingly failed mission that causes her to go from a confident agent who was a phenomenal expert in her field, to suddenly doubting her career. She has recently been sent to an extremely rural town called Toselville; playing the part of a young nature photographer. Her mission: find the middle aged son of two weapons designers who created blueprints for the United States government.
Next, we have Wolf. RLIP agents have partners who talk to them through earpieces. Field agents are not allowed to see their partners or even know their names. Felix has had many partners who were generally cold and over-professional. But Felix has been assigned to Wolf, an older gentleman who is sort of her mentor, boss, therapist, best friend, and grandfather figure all in one. Everyone needs a Wolf in their life.
As time goes on, Felix befriends Ashton Mathis, the owner of the only grocery shop in town. Ashton instantly becomes enamored with Felix’s beauty and kindness she shows towards him, and he begins to pursue her while she is in the midst of working on an incredibly dangerous mission.
And finally, we have Juro, a field agent assigned to be Felix’s other partner as the mission becomes more dangerous. He’s tall, intimidating, often irritated in the first book, technologically advanced, and just the sort of backup you’d want if you were in their situation.
How did you come up with the concept and characters for the book?
I just thought of myself as a spy, who I would want to be if I were one, and thought of the types of people I’d want to be surrounded with.
Where did you come up with the names in the story?
I put a lot of thought into the names of the characters in my books and sometimes reference online baby name catalogues for ideas! It’s almost like naming a kid…you see one name and don’t want to use it because you knew someone “bad” with that name.
Faith came to me because of my Christian background and how important faith truly is to be successful. I also remembered hearing that name for the first time when I was in preschool. One of my classmates had that name and I remember really liking it. I don’t remember anything about the classmate, unfortunately, except that she was kind. It was so long ago. I would say it’s important for a spy to have faith when they’re in dangerous situations to help them stay calm.
As for the others, Wolf is just a cool codename, and he’s protective like one. Ashton’s name came about because I have a love for “A” names. And Juro was a name I found in a baby catalogue when I was searching for names with Japanese origins. It was the one that stood out to me the most.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
Everything. I love creating characters and spending time with them. They become family to me. I loved creating the town, which was loosely based off of the small towns that my parents grew up in and that I got to visit frequently as a kid.
Tell us about your main characters- what makes them tick?
Felix is all about justice and the safety of others. If something isn’t fair or someone is in danger, she won’t think twice about jumping in to help, even if it means danger for her. Sometimes she may even take it a little too far. You will see that characteristic often, especially in the upcoming book, “Perception and Deception III.”
How did you come up with the title of your first novel?
Well, the first novel I ever wrote has never been published and has never had an official name. It’s a YA project that I’m planning on circling back around to soon and revamping for publication.
As for the first book I ever published, “Tesoro: Secrets of the Hidden Treasure,” that story is about a female treasure hunter and the pirates who left it all behind hundreds of years ago (think, “Pirates of the Caribbean” mixed with, “National Treasure”). The first book in that series takes place in Italy. The Italian word for, “treasure” is “tesoro.” The pirate crew starring in this story is called The Tesoro Crew.
