I began to write in a journal as an attempt to heal myself. I was at a spiritual crossroads. I did not understand why life was unfolding the way it was. The only thing I could relate to was music and in particular, Rick Springfield's Shock/Denial/Anger/Acceptance. Rick explains that he views this title as the four stages of healing, and I was somewhere in between denial and anger when I decided I had to bang out my story onto paper.

Each character is a little piece of me, what goes on in my head. It was only natural that I acted upon
my longtime love of vampires and include some vampirism in the novel. Some of them are happy to be
who they are, and some, so they say, are not. Whether you believe in vampires or not, the unhappy ones
struggle with what many people do, once they reach mid-life...affirmation, our purpose in life, love versus lust.

Rick Springfield: Why was he chosen as the inspiration for Kristoph?

Well, why not? It was his music that validated some of my confusion, that I was not losing my mind (or at least not alone in feeling this way). Sometimes when I listen to his music or communicate with him, I feel as if I am in confession. There is a sense of relief afterwards. I'm a pretty complicated person and that old saying 'it takes one to know one' seems to fit rather well. Rick has all of the
characteristics that I wanted Kristoph to have. Throw myself back 25 years, and it was his music that I was listening to when I was going through the growing pains of adolescence.

Rick also loves vampires. He kept a copy of Dracula while growing up in Australia. Back in the 80's, when Anne Rice first thought about making a movie for 'Interview With A Vampire', she had wanted Rick to play Lestat. Rick did play a vampire/homicide detective in Nick Knight, the
pilot movie for the series Forever Knight.

Exeter, Ontario: Why Exeter?

Although I was not born in Exeter, I still consider it my hometown. I arrived one fall day to be the new kid at Exeter Public School. As I look back on those years, I realize how lucky I was to have grown up in such a beautiful town...baseball, swimming, bike riding, exploring Morrison Dam, The Exeter Rodeo, school Christmas concerts, the thrill of dressing up and going out on Halloween, parades, the fall fair, and, Exeter is where many of my firsts took place. My first kiss. My first concert. The first and only place I have ever seen a white squirrel (not an albino squirrel). My first struggle with my own faith. I needed a setting for the book that I felt comfortable enough with to write my thoughts freely.

I also wanted to feel as if I knew the location well enough to manipulate it into something that it is not. Finally... my grade 13 English class, taught by Bruce Shaw Sr. Never have I enjoyed an English class as much as that one. He graciously taught the art
of dissecting literature and applying lessons learned to every day life. Bruce was also a former Mayor
of Exeter.