It was fairly easy to make the transition because both careers are based on creativity. I've always been involved in some form of creativity all my life. So whether it was mixing the soundtrack for an hour-long television special or writing a 100k-word novel, I was involved in creating something from nothing. Same side of the brain, different day.

Also, I love to read action/adventure novels. Once I finished one from my favorite author, I would have to wait a year or so until the next one came out. At some point about 20 years ago I started growing impatient and decided I would "play" at writing similar stories to fill in those 12-month gaps. The more I wrote, the more I wrote.

Our books are high concept apocalyptic thrillers with a big dose of the supernatural thrown in. Cotten Stone is the daughter of a Fallen Angel. But as her journey begins in The Grail Conspiracy, she doesn't know her legacy or destiny. She is a rookie network correspondent who finds herself in Iraq right at the beginning of the current war. Once she uncovers a shadowy conspiracy to create a clone of Christ from DNA found in the Holy Grail, she is caught up in an effort to find and stop it from happening, all the time not knowing why she has been chosen to do so. It makes no sense to her and she rejects the spiritual implications of her task and heritage. By the time the story ends, she accepts that she was the only one who could have put an end to the threat but resists and resents being chosen.

Book 2, The Last Secret, is by far my favorite. The reason is it contains a valuable life lesson that not only suggests how to live a full life but how to enter the “Kingdom of Heaven”. I’ve actually had readers tell me that it changed their life.

Name wise, Cotten is the name of a college friend of my co-author, Lynn Sholes. When we first decided to collaborate, she wanted to use the name for our main character and I agreed. Stone was my idea—nothing more than a simple contrast.

We chose a female protagonist for several reasons. We thought that being a woman gave her a vulnerability that could add to the tension in a thriller. It's never the bang-bang, shoot 'em up that creates suspense in any book, it's the anticipation. And if the reader feels fear for the protagonist, it just ratchets up the tension a notch. That doesn't mean the reader can't be afraid for a male protagonist but the market is chock full of tough guys in danger. We wanted our hero to be different.

Throughout the series, Cotten battles the Forces of Evil, and with each book it becomes clearer to her that she must embrace her destiny. By the time book four--The 731 Legacy--ends, she has discovered a deep, revealing secret to her heritage that gives her confidence in her life path. No more doubt or confusion. She has grown into a confident heroine ready to face the next challenge. As of now, the series ends with 731.

Prior to collaborating on our first book, Lynn Sholes and I spend almost 10 years as friends in a weekly writer's critique group. So by the time we decided to write together, there were few issues or surprises in dealing with ego, writing styles or author voice. We already knew what our individual strengths and weaknesses were and our goal was to capitalize on them. The result was The Grail Conspiracy which was named Book-Of-The-Year by ForeWord Magazine. It became an international bestseller and has been translated into 23 languages

There are a number of advantages and disadvantages to collaborating. A disadvantage is that you split any money you make. So you'll always make half of what you could as a single author. And like any relationship, there is always a chance of a falling out. And something could happen where an ego can become inflated and affect the process.

One of the pluses is that we never experience writer's block. One of us will always have an idea on how to get out of a jam or move the story forward. And unlike our family, friends, trusted beta readers, and everyone else, a co-writer has an intimate, vested interest in the success of the story that no one else could have.

I grew up devouring the stories of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Ian Fleming, Clifford D. Simak, J.R.R. Tolkien and other action adventure novelists. As an adult, I moved on to the likes of Clive Cussler, Jack Higgins and Tom Clancy. Currently, I enjoy authors who write books that are similar to mine—Jim Rollins, Steve Berry, Doug Preston, and Lincoln Child. I also have great respect for Thomas Harris and Jeff Lindsay who I believe created the two most unique characters in pop fiction: Dr. Hannibal Lecter and Dexter Morgan.

It would have to be Thomas Harris for two reasons. First, he has the uncanny ability to write without using cliche's. He always finds a fresh way to say or describe. One of my favorites is "...as blue as a meat inspector’s stamp." The second reason is he's the only author that really scares me. He seems to know exactly what I fear.

My standard answer is that I have three favorite movies: Alien, Predator, and Alien Vs. Predator. TV-wise, it would have to be 24.

Lynn and I are about halfway through writing our fifth thriller called The Phoenix Apostles. It's a standalone that might turn into a series. The theme is: Why is someone stealing the burial remains of the most notorious mass murders in history?

Yes, I'd like to know if when a cow laughs, does milk come out its nose?