I’m usually the one asking the questions. On a recent episode of The Miami Book Hub, however, author and longtime journalist Ana Veciana-Suarez took over my chair. Suddenly, I was the guest, explaining how an urban planner ended up writing about ancient mysteries, secret societies and world domination. Apparently, asking the questions is the easy part.
Our conversation began with my September 22 launch at Books & Books, where Ana had joined a standing-room-only crowd.
“There was so much love in that room,” she said.
There really was. “It was amazing. It was a relief. It was a joy,” I told her. I had worked to create an immersive experience, with food featured in the story, music inspired by it, an induction ceremony, themed giveaways, and a conversation moderated by Dr. Paul George, himself a character in my book. Having him there was especially meaningful: some of my earliest dates with my wife were on his history tours.
But how did I get there? Oddly enough, by failing to meditate.
Sitting on a swing beneath a banyan tree overlooking a canal, I was trying to quiet my relentlessly busy mind. Instead, I started wondering whether technology could help. Could someone invent a wearable device that would balance Qi and make meditation easier?
That question sent me down a rabbit hole of research and business planning. Eventually, I concluded that bringing such an invention into the world wasn’t a project I was equipped to pursue. But imagining it? That was another matter. And what would happen if it fell into the wrong hands?
That became the seed of the arQitect, the first book in my planned nine-volume Maya Lin & the Ancient Order of Seshat saga. Maya, a young architectural historian at the University of Miami, is drawn into a collision between ancient knowledge and a corrupted Silicon Valley technology company. The adventure draws on my love of The Goonies and Indiana Jones, with philosophical questions and a little of The Matrix woven in.
“There’s a yin-yang to technology, just as there is to everything” I explained. “There’s potential for good. There’s also potential for bad.”
That duality runs through the characters and settings, too. I described Miami and San Francisco as both contrasting and complementary, from their landscapes to their immigrant communities. Or, as I put it: “They have sourdough, we have pastelitos.”
I also drew a connection between planning cities and building fictional worlds. Both begin with a vision, then require figuring out how the pieces fit together. Before writing this saga, I needed a blueprint: the larger story, the individual books and the themes connecting them.
I’ve even written the ending of the ninth book.
“I can’t start writing until I know the ending,” Ana agreed.
Now comes the small matter of getting there.
Of course, an outline doesn’t protect you from self-doubt. I shared how impostor syndrome had helped sideline the manuscript for almost a year. Finding time around a demanding job and family life was another challenge, with writing squeezed into early mornings, evenings and weekends. Then came the education in editing, publishing and promoting a book myself.
We ended by welcoming Ana into the Ancient Order of Seshat, recognizing her years of service to Miami’s literary community. It was also a chance to explain why I’ve extended this adventure into music and a reader community.
“I really want people to feel like they’re in this story and a part of it,” I said.
My thanks to Ana for taking the host’s chair, Books & Books for an unforgettable launch, and Miami’s Community Newspapers for helping us share these conversations.
Visit ThreeTreasuresPress.com to explore the book’s world, purchase the book, and view this and other episodes of The Miami Book Hub.
Until next time… keep reading, keep writing and stay curious, Miami. Onward & Upward!
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