Her Covert Protector by Victoria Paige

Afterword

Every time I finish a first draft, I’m afraid to look at the headlines. I had to tweak the overarching plot of the first three books of the Rogue Protectors series to reduce the impact of the virus storyline because of the pandemic. I also delayed publishing the first book.

The plot for Her Covert Protector came to me when a cyberattack the previous year hit several private companies and government institutions. Digging into the details, I saw the vulnerabilities to the energy infrastructure. When the Texas power grid issue occurred last winter, I was in the midst of plotting, and again, I decided to focus the cyberattack to a fictional city—Sequoia Global City (SGC) in L.A—rather than take down its entire power grid. The manuscript was with my editor when another cyberattack hit the headlines, and this time, the public became more aware of its consequences. There was only so much I can tweak in my story, but I’m glad I limited it to a fictional city and changed the stakes so that it wouldn’t be too ripped-from-the-headlines.

In case you’re also curious, my fictional city is the area around Pasadena where Caltech is located. Also in this area, is NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. And yes, I toyed with ideas with it too, but given my track record lately with my books, I ditched that plot thread.

John and Nadia’s book was supposed to be an easy one to write because there was no overarching suspense storyline to work in from the past books. Two things challenged me here. The first one was unpacking John’s character slowly and making his metamorphosis riveting to read. I was not expecting the humor that was sprinkled throughout this book. Putting him in uncomfortable situations for him to work through his conflicts was enjoyable to write. As for Nadia, I loved how her character arc jived with John’s and how the theme of identity held the book together. StreamCon worked perfectly for this and blended the suspense plot into the theme.

My second challenge was my big cast of characters. It took several passes with my development editor, my editor, and beta readers to make the scenes involving many characters cohesive and readable, especially since the external and emotional stakes intertwined in several of them.

So much for an easier book to write. LoL!

This book wouldn’t be possible without my excellent team.

Big thanks to my developmental editor Geri for continuing to read my messy first draft. You’ve been a great sounding board, devil’s advocate—lol, and you continue to challenge me to write these character-driven, emotional, and suspenseful storylines. It thrilled me when you agreed that the eventual villain was a good plot twist. Our brainstorming sessions are always fun and immensely helpful.

Special thanks to my beta reader, Sue. I loved your analysis of John and Nadia’s journey throughout this book. I handled John’s character arc differently from my other heroes because a part of him falling in love with Nadia was to open himself up to people around her and his team. Showing this through his interactions with everyone was important and I’m happy my intent came across clearly to you. I also appreciate all the notes you put on my manuscript.

A big thanks to my editor Kristan Roetker. As usual, you polish my work without editing out my voice. I appreciate your patience as I experiment with my writing and your honesty when you feel it doesn’t work. You’ve been my friend and editor through several books and together we make a great team!

Much appreciation to Lynn for jumping in at a short notice and making sure my suspense plot was clear, and it didn’t overwhelm the romance.

Thank you to Dana Dunphy of A Book Nerd Edits for proofreading and for the quick turnaround on this manuscript. It certainly helped me catch up with my release schedule when I was falling behind.

To Debra and Drue of Buoni Amici Press. You are rock stars in taking care of the ins and outs of being an indie author, leaving me to my creativity and TikTok. ;)

Special thanks to Jose Luis Barreiro for being my perfect Garrison! I couldn’t have picked a better model. I appreciate all your help promoting the book.

Thanks to Wander Aguiar and his team for providing the perfect image as usual. I’m always eager to see who you’re photographing next.

I absolutely love my Very Important Paige readers. A lot of you couldn’t wait for Garrison and Nadia’s book. I hope the wait was worth it and more!

Thank you to the book community—Bookstagrammers, BookTokkers, and Book Bloggers everywhere who continue to read, review, and share my book.

Finally, I wouldn’t be able to write this book without my darling hubby who continues to take care of mundane housework while I’m ensconced in my writing cave. Best of all, you make sure I have something to eat when I emerge. And to Loki, you are the best emotional support dog for an author whose characters give her hives. You sit still and let me hug you, and hugging you is all that I need to make me feel better.