Why a guy?

Why is your main character/protagonist male?

I wasn’t expecting this question…because Sam was Sam from the beginning of the idea of the story in my head, and I never once questioned his gender or his personality – he was the figure driving the story and around whom the events of Midgard would transpire.

  Upon reflection, Sam is probably male because, until quite recently, I spent the bulk of my life around far more men than women.  I am the only daughter of four children, I have a son myself, and both my first profession (the Army) and academic pursuits (military history, security studies, cyber security) were and remain male-dominated fields.  Consequently, most of my colleagues, role models, and mentors were men, which likely led me to lead off my first novel with a male protagonist.

That is not to say that women play a minor part in my life or do so in Sam’s.  I was intentional about surrounding Sam with strong female characters, and at least two of them pull a lot of strings behind the scenes – I look forward to showcasing their capabilities and their competing influence over Sam’s desires and decisions in Midgard’s sequel.  Stay tuned!

For those of you who have not yet read it, Midgard is available in digital and physical form here.

And…stay tuned for an imminent announcement regarding the audiobook.  The work is finished – I’m just awaiting quality control and distribution approval from Amazon and Findaway Voices, a process that can take from four days to four weeks. 

(P.S. The drawing of Sam Richmond is by my friend and colleague, George Hegedus - his work is featured in the "Lore" tab of be-stirred.com!