Scott: Daniel and the Sea Serpent details the adventure of a desert dwelling thirteen-year-old boy named Daniel. He has dreamed of sailing on the ocean for as long as he can remember, which never made sense to him because he lived in the desert. Through a bizarre series of events, he’s thrust out to sea on an ancient ship where he discovers the lost scroll of his people and meets a massive sea serpent named Seneca. If he hopes to survive, he must discern the truth between the scroll and the serpent.
CFBR: What can kids learn from reading it?
CFBR: What can kids learn from reading it?
Scott: My hope is that they will learn they can trust God’s word no matter the circumstances they may find themselves in.
CFBR: What are the Christian themes of the book?
Scott: You will find the themes of truth, sacrifice, and forgiveness in the book. You won’t find an explicit gospel message spelled out, but you will find the importance and authority of God’s word emphasized and allusion to Christ’s sacrifice.
CFBR: Is there a hook in the first chapter, if so, what is?
Scott: If I don’t have a hook, then I’m in trouble. Daniel’s dreams are mentioned in the first paragraph, and by the end of the first chapter, he discovers a mysterious object buried deep in the sand that he has to identify. Those that have read it have said that it’s one of those books you don’t want to put down. I hope others will also find that to be the case.
CFBR: How did you come up with the idea for your book?
Scott: Our family was on vacation and my oldest son asked me to tell them a story to pass the time as we traveled. Each night, he asked me to tell the next chapter in the story. By the time we arrived back home, I began to think that there was some potential in the storyline. The story went through a number of revisions and modifications, but the kernel of the story began on that vacation.
CFBR: What has surprised you most as a first time author?
Scott: The amount of work involved in rewriting and marketing. The oft repeated saying is true, “There are no good writers; there are only good rewriters.” I honestly don’t know how many times I went through the story and changed a character or tweaked a scene. It seemed like a never ending process. But now that that’s done, I’ve discovered marketing involves as much work if not more. Writing the first draft, in many ways, is the easy part.
CFBR: How many books are you planning for this series?
Scott: I’m planning three books for sure, but I’m also toying with the possibility of doing a couple back story novels that I think would be exciting in and of themselves. Right now I’m focused on book two. It’s an exciting plot that I’m eager to finish. I’m hoping to have it available by next spring or early next summer.
CFBR: What do you hope to accomplish with this series?
Scott: This is going to be a two-part answer. I hope that the books themselves might encourage youth to look to God’s word as the source of truth, and learn they can trust in God. But I’m also hoping to fund an adoption through the proceeds of the series. There’s a minor storyline about orphans in the novel, and in the time since I wrote the first draft, the Lord has laid it on our family’s heart to pursue adoption. As an adoptee myself, I would love the opportunity to provide a family for a child who needs one.
That is definitely a worthy cause. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us
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