Why I Wrote A Book
I remember a dream I had. I was hiking up a mountain with a handful of soldiers behind me. We were like warriors on some long, epic journey. The mountain itself had a staircase carved into its surface so it was easy to climb, yet still it was a lengthy one. As we neared the mountain's summit, I heard the sound of wings flapping so strongly that it was like the wind was blowing. A loud shriek echoed in the distance; it got louder as it repeated. Then to my right, I see it; an enormous bird of many colors gliding past to see who dares to disturb it. We tried to hide, but as it flew around a second time, it spotted me. It must not have been happy to see me as it began pecking at the mountain trying to stop me from reaching the top.
It goes without saying that this was probably the most amazing thing I've ever dreamed, possibly so much so that I had the same dream twice. I couldn't stop thinking about it or how cool it was, so I began to re-imagine that scene over and over throughout my day. Eventually, I started thinking of a story to go along with this scene. There was this warrior on an important quest, but she wasn't alone. She had soldiers that followed her orders. There was a great beast unleashed upon the land. Slowly, I began to put together a narrative that I thought was interesting, and then I thought to myself, "Why not make it a novel?" Hence, late 2015, I began to write my first novel, "Hypierion".
That dream was not the only reason I started writing. As a fan of comics, superhero movies, and video games my imagination has always been hyperactive. I always thought about the stories of my favorite characters and wondered what it would be like to be them. I pictured having their powers mostly, (as I am sure everyone has), but also what I would differently in their shoes. For instance, if I were Spider-man from the 2002 movies, I would have stopped the thief from escaping in the elevator which would keep my uncle alive. Then again, how would he have learned about the importance of responsibility? I often think of the character's flaws and what makes them who they are, interchanging attributes as I go. From this I began to envision new characters with their own gifts and weaknesses that I felt were seldom seen.
At the end of the day, I wanted to portray heroes in a way that I haven't yet witnessed. I wanted to create a strong male lead that was confident but not arrogant. He would know who he is and what he can do, but his confidence would give him the security to acknowledge that he needed to learn how to be great. I wanted to create a strong female lead that was tough and iron willed, but she would also have a vulnerability about her that would keep her well rounded. It was equally if not more important that I make the ethnicity of the characters black as I have rarely seen black characters represented in such a fashion. To me, the idea of honorable warriors, devoted husbands and fathers, noble queens, and a proud, ancient people being portrayed by black characters is quite refreshing.
My goal for this project was share everything that was on my mind in a creative way. From my dreams to my hopes for society, I felt compelled to tell a story that was not only action packed and interesting, but also a story that was inspiring. I'd like to think that my story achieves this goal, and I'd also like to think that it was an entertaining read that sparked much needed conversation.