The Fallen – Author Interview with HCI Books
THE FALLEN – PUBLISHER’S INTERVIEW
1. First, please briefly tell us a little bit about yourselves – your background, career path–anything you’re comfortable sharing.
Chris:
Everything happens for a reason and my story is no different. In 1991 I
graduated from the police academy with high confidence that I was going to
attain a job at one of the higher paying police departments. Nine months later
my ambitions of becoming a police officer were dwindling as I had interviewed
at approximately 15 different departments all ending in rejection. My first
meeting with Mike Force was when he offered me the opportunity to become a full time police officer for $17,000 per year and although I was glad to have a job,
I was disappointed that it wasn’t one of the higher paying departments. Looking
back on it now I realize that it was the best thing that has ever happened to
me. I rose though the ranks to become the Assistant Chief of Police, attained
my undergraduate degree in human resources and my graduate degree in business administration. I also graduated from Northwestern University’s School of Police Staff and Command and the FBI National Academy which is one of the premier certifications in law enforcement. Aside from law enforcement, I became a published author with my friend and co-author, Mike Force, in 2010 with our debut novel, The Light Bringer. Currently, we are scheduled to release our second book in the trilogy, The Fallen, on February 5th, 2013. My family is the most important aspect of my life and I’m truly blessed to have them.
Mike: Like Chris, I have a strong belief that all things that happen, happen for a reason. I left High School and joined the Marine Corps in 1969 primarily for financial reasons but also out of a strong sense of patriotism which stemmed from the values offered by my parents. During my next 22 years of active duty in the Marine Corps, I was afforded opportunities to finish my High School education, obtain a Bachelor’s Degree and matriculated to service as a Commissioned Officer in 1981. After retiring from the Marine Corps in 1991, I spent a short amount of time self employed in the computer industry but missed the closeness of a small group working environment. I applied for and was selected for my current position as Chief of Police in Lake Saint Louis,
Mo in March of 1992. I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, A Master of Science in Human Resource Management and am a graduate of the FBI
National Academy.
Chris and I became published authors in 2010 and continue to try to bring our message to others regarding the importance of how we live our lives through writing and speaking engagements.
2. What is your new book, The Fallen, about?
Chris and Mike:
The Fallen is the second book in our Light Bringer trilogy and it builds on the
basic concepts we’ve established in the first book which revolve around “thinking
beyond life.” The Fallen is a fast paced
supernatural thriller mixed with a police procedural genre where there are 4
ritualistic murders and unexplainable natural disasters that eventually
coincide. This book attempts to draw clear lines between good and evil that
exist in society and how each is defined and organized. We believe that The Fallen continues to climb
toward the questions that establish the main theme of the entire trilogy, which
are, “Why to do people die?” and “Why to bad things happen to good people?”
3. Your first book, The Light Bringer, has done well in terms of hitting the local best sellers list and being nominated for some awards. What else is happening that may push it even higher?
Chris and Mike:
One of the big accomplishments, regarding The Light Bringer, is that we’ve
attained an agreement with a production company out of Los Angeles California
who is developing a T.V. series. We’ve
been working with them over the last year to complete a screenplay on the pilot
and are preparing to begin soliciting resources and network acquisition. We think that this endeavor will further
spread the concept, story and message.
4. How is the feedback you’ve been receiving on the books?
Chris and Mike:
The Light Bringer received amazing feedback when it was released. We were bombarded with inspiring comments from people who wanted to tell us their personal stories. Our early readers for The Fallen have told us that they like this book even better than the first so we believe it will exceed our expectations.
5. Why do you think people like telling you their stories after reading these books?
Chris and Mike:
A supernatural thriller and police procedural genre is popular among readers,
however we believe that it’s the aspect of hope that our main character and the
overall stories tell which attract people.
When society is faced with evil, good people come together to overcome
it and we believe that’s what our readers see as valuable – it’s a fast paced
exciting story but it brings people hope that good will prevail.
6. What do you attribute your success in your writing endeavors to?
Chris and Mike:
Faith, family and friends. If you have those three, you’ll live a purpose-filled life.
Without that, we wouldn’t be where we are today.
7. What does writing do for you personally?
Chris and Mike:
We deal with a lot of tragedy in law enforcement and we’ve found that writing
helps us cope and perhaps tell a story in a way which aids us in making sense
of horrific situations – like we said earlier – “Why do people die and why do
bad things happen to good people?” We’ve
found that through our writing we can also help other people by stimulating
thought and letting them know that they’re not alone in dealing with trauma and
grief. We believe that living your life
by doing what’s right is critically important as is showing others compassion,
kindness and empathy.
8. What other things have you two done to further this philosophy of showing others compassion and empathy?
Chris and Mike:
We were prompted by some close friends to start an organization which could
further those core values that we believe are so important. Last year we put together a non profit
organization called The Light Bringer Foundation which seeks out ways to
recognize people for showing compassion and helping others in need. We held our first award ceremony in September
of 2012 where we honored two people, who exemplify those values, with the first
Light Bringer Awards. It’s our hope that
the recognition of those people who live their lives by these attributes will
continue to influence others to do the same.
You can see more at www.tlbf-inc.com.
9. Where can readers get a copy of The Fallen or The Light Bringer?
Chris and Mike:
They should be available in all the book stores who should either have them in
stock or be able to order them. They’re
also available online through Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Books-A-Million –
here are the links:
Amazon – http://goo.gl/R0E3L
Barnes & Noble – http://goo.gl/SXIoI
Books-A-Million – http://goo.gl/WUAFo
Readers can also see more about both books at www.thelightbringerbook.com to include both book trailers and both books are available electronically – Kindle, Nook and other e-readers.
10. So in conclusion, what’s next for Chris and Mike?
Chris and Mike:
We are continuing to work on the third book to conclude the trilogy and await
our next unknown adventure in the literary world. Things seem to happen without much advance notice sometimes so we try to be open-minded and ready for whatever opportunities or challenges arise.
