Author Interview - Allen Brokken - middle grade fantasy

Guide to categories: Author Interview – an interview with an author, if there is no review from me, I have not read the book and cannot speak to its appropriateness for a school library

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About the Book

Book: Demolishing the Stronghold

Author: Allen Brokken

Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy

Release Date: November 4, 2023

Lauren, Aiden, and Ethan finally found respite for their whole family in the grove surrounding the Wellspring of Life. However, the threat of the Dark One’s forces still looms over the Heathlands, and lighting the tower of Light in Blooming Glen is their only hope of cleansing their land of The Darkness once and for all. While the family plans a surprise attack on the stronghold at Blooming Glen, the Bishop calls forth the Calamitous Drake, a monster forged from the essence of The Darkness in the corrupted heart of the Iron Mountain. In the midst of the battle, the monster scatters the family, leaving Mother, Uncle, and Tye in the hands of Lord Refi’Cul and the evil giant Skull Crusher who aims to make Tye his wife and become the Master of the Heath Wardens

The children must take to the skies to forge a weapon capable of defeating the Calamitous Drake. Will Lauren, Aiden, and Ethan’s faith give them the strength to Demolish the Stronghold?

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About the Author – Allen Brokken

Allen Brokken is a teacher at heart, a husband, and a father most of all. He’s a joyful writer by the abundant grace of God. He began writing the Towers of Light series for his own children to help him illustrate the deep truths of the Bible in an engaging and age-appropriate way. He’s dedicated 18 years to volunteer roles in children’s ministry and youth development. Now that his children are off to college, he’s telling stories and sharing clean humor on social media.

More from Allen Brokken

As I worked to close out the Towers of Light series, I had to work hard to develop something new and different that still fit the 1800s frontier setting. I had a lot of pressure from my readers to bring a dragon to the prairie. On multiple occasions, I had to remind my biggest fans that there aren’t any dragons on the prairie. But they were insistent that dragons make an appearance.

So, as I put the final touches on the previous book, Wellspring of Life, I thought that the censors spreading evil could bring evil things into the world to corrupt the prairie. So, the concept of a dragon formed from the censor’s smoke made a lot of sense. But what would a “Smoke Dragon” be like? I shared the idea with my Realm Makers critique group, and they helped form something that early feedback says works well. The dragon’s name, The Calamitous Drake, is also an homage to a line from “The Hobbit” that refers to Smaug as a great calamity.

With a dragon flying about, I also had to devise a way for the kids to engage it in the air. This took significant research as I didn’t want to introduce giant eagles or something else that didn’t exist on the frontier. As I investigated different options, I discovered that hot air balloons were more common in the 1800’s than I thought. It turned out they served in minor roles during the Civil War and used a technology they called a gasifier to fill them up. I took some artistic liberty with that, and Lauren, Aiden, and Ethan now had a way to get off the ground to meet the dragon in the air.

This story was so much fun to write, and early reviews from my biggest fans say it was the perfect end to the series.

Author Interview with Allen Brokken

When did you first know you wanted to be an author?

As a kid, I always had an active imagination and took to writing as soon as I learned how. I began the Towers of Light Series as a story for my kids. I was traveling for work 4 days a week and spent a lot of lonely nights in hotels across the country. I started writing a story about them in a fantastic setting and then shared it on the weekends. They loved it.

When you are not writing, what other hats do you wear? What do you do for fun?

I play a lot of games. Lately, it’s a mix of XBOX, No Man’s Sky to be exact. I’ve got a gaming group and we’ve been playing online for over 20 years. We’re mostly all over 50 now and a bit slow. We call ourselves Team Fail and our motto is “Snatching Defeat from the Jaws of Victory since 1999.” For my 50^th birthday, we all got together in person, and it was a blast. I also play Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures battles with my eldest son on Sundays after church as a way to make sure we stay connected now that he’s out of the house.

What is your favorite genre to read? What about that genre draws you?

I enjoy science fiction when I’m reading on my own. Fantasy and Steampunk aren’t bad, but I’m really drawn to Sci Fi. I really enjoy Kerry Nietz and Steve Rzasa.

Who did you have in mind as you wrote the book?

The kids in the story are my kids. That was very intentional since I was writing a story about their adventures. I have also used the names and personalities of their actual childhood friends as well.

Which character did you enjoy writing most?

For this one it was really fun to have the opportunity to weave in my now son-in-law as a member of the rescue squad. At the end of the day I’ve embedded a lot of family history, idiosyncrasies and memories in these books, so getting to add Mitchell to the story was really special for me.

As a former K-12 school librarian I have to ask – what is your favorite children’s book?

Right now I’d say for a fun kid read it has to be the Iggy and Oz series by JJ Johnson in the early reader category. For older kids I really enjoy An Echo of the Fae by Janelle Leanne Schmidt.

What advice would you give to a child or teen who wants to be a writer?

I went out of my way to avoid actual literature classes. I found ways to adjust my schedule or take alternate classes because I was going into science. I really wish I hadn’t.

Thanks for joining me today. I enjoyed learning more about you and think my readers will as well.

Views expressed in this interview/guest post do not necessarily reflect the views of this blog host.