Mom’s Choice Awards is excited to announce another post in our interview series where we chat with the inventors, designers, publishers, and others behind some of our favorite family-friendly products.

Hello, Mom’s Choice readers, and welcome to our latest in a series of interviews with our gifted MCA honorees. Today, we were able to talk again with Christian fantasy author Allen Brokken, the multi-Mom’s Choice Award-winning author whose Towers of Light children’s books have long been delighting youngsters. Written for grades 3-6 and as a family read-aloud, the series is now a complete set of six books and audio, as well as a plush toy. Allen concludes the action-adventure series with his latest story: Demolishing the Stronghold.

MCA: Thanks so much for joining us again, Allen. Please tell us something about yourself.

I started writing while traveling for work to connect with my kids. Those stories have turned into a series of books that have kind of taken on a life of their own. Now that my children are off to college, I’m focused on helping families connect with each other by telling stories and sharing clean humor on social media @allenbrokkenauthor and through my newsletter.

MCA: What led you to becoming a writer? Did you run into any setbacks along the way?

As a kid, I always had an active imagination and took to writing as soon as I learned how. I began the Towers of Light series as a story to my kids. I was traveling for work four days a week and spent a lot of lonely nights in hotels across the country. I started writing a story about them in a fantastic setting and then shared it on the weekends. They loved it.

In 2018 I went to my first writer’s conference. After two years of reworking the first book in my series, I felt I had a solid pitch that surely would be picked up by an agent. The first two agent interviews were cordial, but I realized they were likely not buying. But I had hope for the last one. She was teaching a class right before my pitch session, and I was sure I’d learn some valuable insights to improve my pitch. Apparently, my insights were 100 percent wrong because, by the time I finished the pitch, she told me I needed to take a LONG BREAK and rethink the whole thing.

Needless to say, I was devastated. I remember aimlessly wandering into Imo’s pizza at dinner time in a fog of despair. As I got my food, a friendly face said, “I recognize you from the conference; why don’t you sit down with us.” I realized it was Lauren H. Brandenburg, the MC of the conference and an award-winning author. I was really surprised at the invitation, as I really didn’t know her—and who was I? A debut author that was just told to go rethink my life.

But I sat down anyway, and she gracefully untangled the mess I’d become, sharing her own struggles as a writer, moments of extreme doubt, and areas where she later had success after making some changes. Advice from that conversation did allow me to take a brief break from the project to reorient what I was doing and then really dig in to make things better.

So, six years later I find myself on the Realm Makers Realm Awards Long List right next to Lauren H. Brandenburg. That conversation was a blessing that over time bore some real fruit. So, the lesson from this is that all feedback is a gift, and some feedback is like a stale fruitcake—and you need a friend to help choke it down.

MCA: What a great moment—and such good advice! Tell us, what was your inspiration for writing Demolishing the Stronghold?

As I worked to close out the Towers of Light series, I had to work hard to develop something new and different that still fit the 1800s frontier setting. I had a lot of pressure from my readers to bring a dragon to the prairie. On multiple occasions, I had to remind my biggest fans that there aren’t any dragons on the prairie. But they were insistent that dragons make an appearance.

So, as I put the final touches on the previous book, Wellspring of Life, I thought that the censors spreading evil could bring evil things into the world to corrupt the prairie. So, the concept of a dragon formed from the censor’s smoke made a lot of sense. But what would a “Smoke Dragon” be like? I shared the idea with my Realm Makers critique group, and they helped form something that early feedback says works well. The dragon’s name, The Calamitous Drake, is also an homage to a line from The Hobbit that refers to Smaug as a great calamity.

qWith a dragon flying about, I also had to devise a way for the kids to engage it in the air. This took significant research, as I didn’t want to introduce giant eagles or something else that didn’t exist on the frontier. As I investigated different options, I discovered that hot air balloons were more common in the 1800s than I’d thought. It turned out they served in minor roles during the Civil War, and a technology called a gasifier was used to fill them up. I took some artistic liberty with that, and my characters—Lauren, Aiden, and Ethan—now had a way to get off the ground to meet the dragon in the air.

MCA: How best to succinctly explain what this series is about and the fantasy world it takes place in?

When I meet people at conventions I usually ask if they are familiar with Little House on the Prairie. If that reference makes sense, then I say, imagine if Laura Ingalls Wilder from that series put on the full armor of God. You know she dons the helmet of salvation to do battle with the forces of evil. That’s the quick summary of the series. It explores various aspects of the Christian worldview from the perspective of three children who have been put into challenges they must survive through faith alone. The series’ setting is reminiscent of the 1800s Midwestern United States but has mixed in fantastic elements, such as the sword of the spirit and shield of faith, to emphasize traditional moral truths in contemporary language.

MCA: What are some of the key lessons found in Demolishing the Stronghold?

The final book in the series brings all the books’ lessons together. The siblings must closely guard their hearts and shine their light against the darkness. They must trust their conscience, and use discernment, courage, and the armor of God to keep their faith strong to demolish the stronghold of the enemy and through God’s grace triumph over the evil of the Calamitous Drake.

MCA: If you could ensure readers of your book walk away with one main lesson, what would it be?

God is the ultimate source of victory.

MCA: What kind of response from readers have you received?

This story was so much fun to write, and I was so humbled to get reviews from my biggest fans saying it was the perfect end to the series. I knew that it hit the mark when one of my early readers snagged a paragraph and said, “I’m crying over here this was such a beautiful way to end the story.”

MCA: What is next for your writing endeavors?

The first book in my next series is code-named: Logan and Aiden vs. the Hateful Strawberries. This series will pick up about a year after the events of the Towers of Light series, with Logan and Aiden working to fit into daily life in Blooming Glen. While Logan will be the focus of this series, many of your favorite characters will be making appearances along the way.

My other project includes new picture books based on the animal friends of Lauren, Aiden, and Ethan.

MCA: Allen, it’s terrific that you’ll soon be bringing out another series with many of the same characters that are so popular with young readers and their parents. Thanks for joining us today. We wish you the best with your new endeavors!

You can learn more about Allen Brokken and his award-winning book, “Demolishing the Stronghold,” by visiting his MCA Shop page.