This story has so many characters. Which is your favorite?

That’s really like asking a parent which child is their favorite. Impossible to answer, really. Corvus is obviously the spine of the story and the central figure in so many ways. His integrity, tenacity and love for his family and people are so admirable. Yet, I can’t help but feel equally attached to Mama Warad. Such depth, wisdom and sheer bravery! Darienne occupies a very special place in my heart, as well. She has a bold irreverence unlike any other character in the book. And, of course, how can you not love a character like Zach? He never asked for any of this, yet here he is in the thick of it. There are so many more - Dallin, Yazid, Lupe, the list goes on. My only hope is that the readers grow as attached to them as I am.

I’ve read that you have a strong background in actual sword work and martial arts. Can you explain?

Sure. As a young man, studying theatre, I became fascinated with sword work (both for the stage and practical, historical sword work). I began studying with the great masters throughout North America and Europe. At the same time, I was diving deeply into the study of a variety of martial arts. I traveled for years studying and learning from these masters. In time, I opened my own academy and began teaching - all the while, continuing to travel, study and learn. Soon, I had a built a significant reputation and students from all over were traveling to study with me.

Over the intervening 30+ years, I’ve had the opportunity to travel the world, teaching swordplay (both historical and theatrical) to thousands of students and colleagues. I hold multiple black belts in a variety of styles, though now my martial practice has largely become a lovely, esoteric blending of approaches.

I understand that you’re also a musician? Can you expand on that?

Working in the arts, most people learn to wear many hats. Artistic expression can come in many forms, and they are all quite satisfying. I grew up in a very musical household, and was trained formally from a young age. Over the years, my theatre work had largely consumed my attention, so I hadn’t really gotten the chance to spread my wings as a musician. Sometime in the mid-90s, however, my latent interest in music awakened with a vengeance. I soon found myself writing music, creating a band, booking gigs, performing as lead singer, etc. The band enjoyed significant popularity, and soon we were touring all over the eastern half of the US playing our style of Celtic music.

This is where I met my wife, by the way. I hired her as our drummer. As that went along, I picked up a variety of instruments to fill out the sound - keyboard, accordion, pennywhistles and eventually, bagpipes. The first band was called Coyote Run, and we performed and toured for about twelve years, selling thousands of CDs and enjoying great notoriety. That band folded in 2012, and my employment situation wasn’t conducive to being in a band. When the pandemic changed my employment situation, my wife and I decided to once again put a band together. The new project is called Eireann’s Call and has much the same spirit as Coyote Run did. You can explore our music at eireannscall.com or at facebook.com/eireannscall.

Will there be more books in the series? If so, how many?

Yes! The Chronicles of the Raven is definitely going to stretch beyond a trilogy, but how far exactly is unclear. Five books? Six? More? I can’t say exactly at this point, but there’s a lot of story that has to be told, so stay tuned.