Artist In Residence
My first novel, Raven Diablo: Agent of Kali became a physical reality when boxes of books were delivered to my store. When I opened a box and beheld the neat stacks of MY BOOK packed inside, I felt delirious. Now that the writing of the novel is behind me, I find myself reflecting on what it is that made me write the book in the first place. I’d been too busy writing the book to do that before.
Raven Diablo is the story of a very dark superhero, both in skin color and in temperament. She’s the physical embodiment of Kali’s righteous rage. As a result, Raven is a vicious killer, but no one dies who’s not supposed to.
My novel initially grew out of my belief that modern society is in desperate need of heroes. Heroes are crucial for the health of a society. How a society defines the word hero is reflective of the mental health of that society. Judging from the so-called heroes of contemporary society, it’s clear we’re living in a brain damaged world.
But what to do about it? I’ve always loved the expression, “Be the change you want to see”. As an artist, I’ve adapted it to “Create the change you want to see”, and with that desire in mind, I wrote Raven Diablo: Agent of Kali. Though Raven is very much the star of the show, there are several heroic figures in the book. And each one embodies what I feel to be are heroic characteristics. Heroes need not be flesh and blood in order to be influential. Joseph Campbell’s work certainly articulated and illuminated the power of myth.
Raven Diablo: Agent of Kali is heroic fiction, my humble but well meaning attempt to both destroy and redefine the modern notions of heroism.
“A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” It seems that’s the opposite of yours, which happens to be deep and wide. I dig Miko Montgomery artistry, keep it up! I can’t wait to read your book, how do I get a hard copy?