This Was Out Of My Comfort Zone

A conversation I almost said no to.

What do you do when your voice shakes, your palms sweat, and your brain starts running ahead of your mouth?

You say yes to a podcast interview anyway.

I recently sat down with Tim Trott on Author to Author to talk about my speculative fiction series, The Helix Chronicles, and how I went from corporate strategist to full-time writer exploring the ethics of gene editing, rogue AI, and power in the wrong hands.

It’s a conversation I almost backed out of. Interviews stretch me in ways writing doesn’t. But I’m glad I left my comfort zone. We talked about:

• How Broken Code became a love letter to Memphis wrapped in a biotech conspiracy

• Why I created ThoughtCraft Publishing

• My cautious take on AI as both a tool and a threat

• The strategies that helped me find readers early

• And yes, how I landed on “Monica Chase” as a pen name (with bonus logic behind it)

  
  

It’s not always polished. But it’s real. If you’ve ever wanted to hear how this all started—and where it's going next—this one’s for you.

🎧 Listen to the interview here: Author to Author Podcast

A quick behind-the-mic takeaway:

I don’t always love being on the spot. My brain moves fast, my mouth tries to keep up, and I tend to talk in spirals until I find what I actually meant to say. But that’s part of the process. Clarity doesn’t always come wrapped in a perfect sentence. Sometimes it shows up in the middle of the ramble—and that’s where the good stuff lives.

For my fellow writers:

One of the things we touched on was explaining science in fiction without losing the reader. I rely on what I call a layman's echo—a technique where another character reframes or repeats the dense info in simpler terms, emotionally grounded. It helps the pacing, the accessibility, and honestly, the tension. You don’t have to water it down. Just make sure the reader can stay in the story with you.

Next up: The cover of Broken Code got a makeover. In the next post, I’ll share why I changed it after a strong launch, what I learned, and what I’d do differently if I had to start over.