I love writing books. Actually, I love reading books, and for me, writing novels feels very close to reading them. I often tell people I don’t write books, I type them. The stories are already there; they just come out of my fingers and onto the page. I know it sounds too cute, but the preface to my very first book says, “These stories are true. They just haven’t happened yet,” and I believe that.
George R.R. Martin once wrote that there are two kinds of writers: architects and gardeners. Architects design everything from scratch. Gardeners nurture ideas and let them grow. I eventually realized I’m a writer of a third kind, an Excavator. I don’t build worlds so much as uncover them. Tolkien described his own process the same way. He said he “discovered” Middle-earth rather than created it, treating his worldbuilding like archaeology. That idea resonated with me because my stories feel unearthed rather than invented.
I don’t write plot-first novels or tech-first novels. I write people-first novels. I try to show their humanity, their hardships, and their love, all on a hard science fiction stage. I don’t write sci-fi because I love spaceships, although I do. I write it because it gives you a clean framework where you can discard preconceived notions and build a world from scratch while still showing that the human experience is universal. The science is real, or at least extrapolated from what we know is real, and I pride myself on researching exhaustively so the world feels lived-in and true.
I have been living with these characters since 1973. I know them and love them like my family and closest friends. Their stories are their own, not mine. My books aren’t about technology. They’re about people living with the consequences of technology. Humanity is always front and center. The future may be the backdrop, but the beating heart of every story is human.
Humans don’t stop being human just because the setting changes. Technology doesn’t erase emotion; it amplifies it. The future is just the mirror we hold up to ourselves. And in my universe, every conscious being has worth, whether they are human, MINIMCOM, the plant people, or anyone else. What matters is the soul inside, not the material it is made from.
I spend a lot of time researching the science because I don’t want anyone tripped up by things that seem off. Once, my writing partner Steve asked me where Rome was born, and I realized I didn’t know. So, I had to interview her, and that conversation turned into a 57-page document. I always ground the story in real research because it makes the world feel fully realized, and after long enough the details work themselves out. But I don’t need my readers to have a physics degree. I just want them to trust that my future world makes sense. The science is there to support the emotional journey, not overshadow it.
My main characters are Rome, a wonderful, empathetic woman born in the 35th century, and Rei, a brilliant, steady man born in our time. They have their strengths and their flaws, but together they accomplish things neither could achieve alone. Their relationship, and later their children, are the engine behind all my stories. Read enough of the books and you’ll not only connect with them, you’ll come to see them as real people, just like I do. To me, emotional intelligence is the most important quality. Good sci-fi, really good sci-fi, should care about people, not just ideas. My best reviews always say my books have a deeply human core.
That’s why science fiction is the perfect place for me to tell their stories. Sci-fi lets you ask questions you can’t ask in contemporary fiction. It lets you explore identity, consciousness, ethics, love, loss, and meaning at scale. It lets you push characters into situations that reveal who they really are. It lets you imagine futures that feel possible and therefore personal.
When you read my books, I want you to feel them. I want you to care about the characters, not just the rocket ships and all the whiz-bang stuff. I want you to feel the wonder of discovery and to think about the future in a new way. Most of all, I want you to feel less alone in your own questions about what it means to be human.
If you’re ready to step into my universe, start with Rebirth. It’s the gateway to the 35th century and the best place to meet Rome and Rei for the first time. From there, the universe expands in scope, in science, and in humanity. My last two books, Rei’s Road to the Stars and Rome’s Devolution 3465 AD, tell the full story of how Rome and Rei became who they are. Those books were the easiest I’ve ever written because I already knew every beat. They simply flowed out of my fingers.
I write about the future so we can understand the present. My stories are about people first; the science just gives them room to breathe. The future is coming, but the heart of it will always be human.
P.S. Here’s the list of novels comprising the Rome’s Revolution universe to date:
1. Rebirth
2. Rebellion
3. Redemption
(the first three are also available together as the epic omnibus Rome’s Revolution 3455 AD)
4. The Ark Lords
5. Rome’s Evolution
6. The Milk Run
(featuring Rome and Rei’s grown-up children)
7. Rei’s Road to the Stars: The Birth of Rome’s Revolution
8. Rome’s Devolution 3465 AD (work in progress)
9. The Vuduri Companion
(a collection of short stories)