How did you come up with the
idea of setting the story in a Chicago law firm?
The true story is about the internal battle of good
and evil within the main character. I felt that setting the story within a law
first perfectly exemplified that same struggle in a real, and everyday, world
scenario.
Andrew uses ruthless methods
and schemes. Did you ever feel tempted to make him more likable?
Absolutely not. The draw to Drew is in the fact that he is so unlikeable that the reader finds themselves lost in his behaviors. You are almost forced to root for a person you never would in real life because the fiction of it allow for such a broader range of emotions and intrigue than real life.
The book shows Andrew’s moral
struggles. Why was it important to include that side of him?
It is very easy to write a character doused in
purity or in evil. I wanted to show that even someone operating, in times, at
their worst can have redeemable qualities. Qualities that continue to draw the
reader in, wondering if he will end up succumbing to either side.
Many readers said they related to Andrew even though he is dark. Were you surprised by that reaction?
Not per se. I think that it is that same darkness
that kept me wanting to write his story as compellingly as I did. His almost
anti-hero vision of himself makes for an interesting character discovery, which
I think is then paralleled in the reader’s own experiences. How many people
would love to hull off and punch someone who cuts in line, or talks down to
them? Drew does these things, and while I don’t condone those things, it is was
helps readers relate to the freedom he has.
The book has been compared to
Dexter. Do you see the same connection?
Personally I don’t. In Dexter he is driven by a need
he has to commit violence, but through his father he finds an outlet to almost
justify it, should he ever need to. With Drew, despite all of his money, he is
actually quite alone. He doesn’t really have a need to justify what he is doing
to anyone, other than himself, and more than once he is fine with doing dark
things even though he knows they are wrong. That being said the structure of
the story, the villain telling the story themselves, has a very strong Dexter
connection, I just wonder if Drew can ever develop a more morally sound compass
like Dexter has.
What do you think makes
psychological thrillers with morally gray characters so appealing right now?
Right now we live in very uncertain times, led by
very unscrupulous people. While I hope no one would read this tale and use it
as a justification for violence, I do see how falling into a story about
someone who fights the status quo could be a sense of stress relief for some
readers.
This is your debut novel. What
was the hardest part of writing Vault of Secrets?
Honestly making sure I was writing it right. I
finished the story 3 or 4 times before I was happy with the final result
because I wanted to make sure it carried and ended with the same level of
intensity it began with.
How did you balance the mix of
dark, funny, and even relatable moments in the story?
I didn’t. I created a vision board and timeline for
each character, their mannerisms, their development trajectory, and then I
wrote what I thought was the most natural and honest feel depicting them.
What kind of reader do you
think will get the most out of Vault of Secrets?
I think those who will enjoy the book the most are
those that allow themselves to go into it with zero expectation. Read each word
as it is, try not to get fixated on how it will end or who will live and who
won’t just enjoy each page for the page itself and let the story build the
ideas for you. I think if you can do this it will better allow the story to
carry the reader through the story rather than the reader feeling like they
want to race to the end.