How did I come up with my novel, ‘The Trafficking Consortium?’

Coming up with the idea for my novel, ‘The Trafficking Consortium,’ occurred quite by accident. In the summer of 2016, I suffered a severe concussion, which left me laid up for months. After a trip to the hospital, I started seeing doctors and therapists four to five days a week. In the beginning, I didn’t care. They helped me get better.

About 3-4 months after my injury, I noticed my brain felt different. I was missing the constant flow of creative thoughts and images I usually have. Frankly, I was scared. Would it ever return? Would I have to live my life without my favorite friend in my mind? After another three months, I was still wondering.

As a change of pace and to get out of the house, I accompanied my girlfriend when she needed to attend a conference in the Washington, DC area with her daughter. After arriving, while she was out for the day, I stayed behind and pulled out my drawing tablet and pencils. For three days straight, I drew, not from imagery in my mind but from photographs and what I saw out the window of my hotel room. It was fine, and it was a change of pace that I needed. Still, though, my creative stream remained elusive.

Voilà, I came up with the idea for my novel, ‘The Trafficking Consortium.’

A couple of weeks after I returned home, I found myself sitting in yet another doctor’s office waiting to be called in for an assessment. As I sat there, I watched people come up to the check-in window, hand over their personal information, and sit down to wait. I saw some attractive people wearing alluring outfits to attract partners.

Watching them, I suddenly had a thought. “What if?” I asked myself.

• “What if the secretary handed over my personal information to those whose agendas were unrelated to the doctor’s business?”
• “What could happen?”
• “Do I really want to share my personal information?”
• “Can I trust them?”
• “What can I do if I can’t trust them?”
• “What might happen if they violate my trust?”

And for a brief time, my mind ran rampant with the possibilities. On that day and in that instant, a story idea exploded in my mind and consumed me. I had to write it down. In about five weeks, I had written the first draft of ‘The Trafficking Consortium.’ After that, I began the refinement process, and six months later, the story was published to outstanding reviews. And that is I came up with the idea of my novel, ‘The Trafficking Consortium.’