What started out as a social commentary on my ‘utopia’ quickly turned into a tale of grief and loss, as I explored a direction that had plagued me for some time—am I real?

It is a genuine question I would ask myself, as I would experience moments of solipsism that would shake me to my core. Switching my focus from my philosophy to my profound awareness of my singular consciousness, I constructed a story of loss, hinging on the idea—life can change in an instant. This is the story I told through the nearly 40,000 words of Simulation Paradox.

While the story started with Alonso Brown, I quickly fell in love with my other 2 main characters, George Saxton and Cooper Fieldsman. Each is unique in their own way, adding to the joy of their creation.

While both Alonso and Cooper are entirely my own brainchildren, Saxton was heavily influenced by Stellan Skarsgård's portrayal of Boris Shcherbina in the TV series Chernobyl. While the two characters are very much unique, I found myself watching Chernobyl on repeat in the background while writing to help inspire me to create Colonel George Saxton.