I see your anime cover — is this inspired by a particular anime/animes? Are there any anime-esque elements in it?

The cover of my first published book, “The Chronicles of Yona” (Available on Amazon.com) has a picture of a young woman, with a Japanese sword, and pink twintails in the anime drawing style.

I’m an avid consumer of anime, having watched over hundreds of titles ranging from 12 episodes, to hundreds of episodes. I wanted to prime the reader to see the world as an anime style, rather than realistic real life (however, both work, so whatever they envision is the right thing to envision.)

Unlike anime, I avoided most tropes, and opted for a gritty realism, with attention to the details. My editor had reservations about my presentation of the minutia in great detail, so much of it was cut out, favoring a faster pace instead. I wanted to write a war drama, and how this young woman would grow from her traumatic experience.

One day, I hope a publisher finds the book and makes it into an anime. After the anime, I hope it gets adopted into a videogame. Which would be hilarious, since the character came from a videogame. Whether this dream sees the light of day is in God’s hands, and all I can do is pray and do my part to see it through. Many factors are external.

When I make a second book for this series, I’m not sure my cover artist will be available. I might have to bite the bullet and take the A.I. route, and go for a semi realistic anime photo, or consider a still life picture of some inanimate object to permit the reader their imagination.

Overall, the book is ultimately about a girl with a sword, and I’d like to think the cover conveys that.