📚 A Bookish Chat with 'Erabon Prophecy Trilogy' Author Randy C. Dockens | Author Interview | @randycdockens #AuthorInterview #BlogTour #Interview
Dr. Randy C. Dockens has a fascination with science and with the Bible, holds Ph.D. degrees in both areas, and is a man not only of faith and science, but also of creativity. He believes that faith and science go hand in hand without being enemies of each other.
After completing his bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from Auburn University he went on to graduate school at Auburn and completed his first doctorate degree in Pharmaceutics. He began his scientific career as a pharmacokinetic reviewer for the Food and Drug Administration and later joined a leading pharmaceutical company as a pharmacokineticist, which is a scientist who analyzes how the human body affects drugs after they have been administered (i.e, absorbed, distributed, metabolized, and excreted).
Through the years, he has worked on potential medicines within several disease areas, including cardiovascular, fibrosis, and immunoscience to seek and develop new and novel medicines in these therapy areas.
He has also had his attention on the academic study of the Bible. He earned a second doctorate in Biblical Prophecy from Louisiana Baptist University after receiving a master’s degree in Jewish Studies from the Internet Bible Institute under the tutelage of Dr. Robert Congdon.
Randy has recently retired from his pharmaceutical career and is spending even more time on his writing efforts. He has written several books that span dystopian, end-time prophecy, science fiction, and uniquely told Bible stories. All of his books, while fun to read, are futuristic, filled with science to give them an authentic feel, have a science fiction feel to them, and allow one to learn some aspect of Biblical truth one may not have thought about before. This is all done in a fast-paced action format that is both entertaining and provides a fun read to his readers.
Randy’s latest books are in the Christian science fiction series, ERABON PROPHECY TRILOGY.
You can visit his website at www.RandyDockens.com or connect with him on Twitter, Facebook and Goodreads.
TWL: Welcome to The
Writer's Life! How did you come up with
the idea to write your book?
Randy C. Dockens: Interestingly enough, it happened over dinner. My wife and I met with some friends of ours for dinner one evening at a local restaurant. The conversation went far and wide and even verged on the ridiculous. We started talking about aliens, and our conversation at first posed the general types of questions most think about: What would aliens think of us humans? How different would they look from us? How advanced would their technology be from ours? Those thoughts then led to deeper questions. What would be their core beliefs? Would they serve a different type of God than we do? As we talked, we came to the realization that if truth is truth, then our God would also be their God. The way they looked, the customs they followed, and the way they worshipped may be different, but the essence of who God really is should still be the same if God is really God of the universe. That dinner conversation was the genesis of the trilogy that developed: Erabon Prophecy Trilogy.
TWL: Can you give us a short excerpt?
Randy: Chapter One from Myeem: Triton
“What’s wrong
with me?”
Nuke waited the
fifteen seconds it took for his message to transmit to earth and another
fifteen for the answer to return. The wait was a pain, but this was better than
no communication at all. Being at the corner of the solar system and circling
Neptune, communicating with family on Earth—even if delayed—made life
tolerable.
Nuke knew what
his mom’s answer to his question would be. He smiled as she appeared onscreen.
Everyone said he got his good looks from her. His father had more of a dark
complexion and rough look to his face. Nuke could see he had his mother’s high
cheekbones, olive-tan-colored complexion, and smile, which always displayed a
slight mischievous look. He even inherited her slightly wavy hair.
In another few
moments, he was listening to his mother’s reply: “Yohanan Chaikin, you know
there is nothing wrong with you. You’re just unique, just like Yahushua.”
Nuke laughed to
himself. That was always her answer to this question he had asked both of them
many times. What others saw in him as abnormal, she only saw as special. He
stared out the window as he lay on his bunk and contemplated this. The rings of
Neptune loomed across the horizon.
He focused on
his mom. She refused to call him by his nickname, or even his transliterated
name, John. If she did, then she would have to admit something was wrong with
him. Well . . . at least different from everyone else. He almost didn’t make it
into the Academy because of this difference. Thank goodness, the physician in
charge at the time persisted to find the cause of his not being able to have an
adequate body scan. The doctor found, and used, antiquated medical equipment to
pronounce him healthy.
Nuke ran his right
hand over his left arm. His skin felt normal but apparently wasn’t. Somehow,
his skin emitted a low electric voltage that interfered with body scans and
other medical equipment that relied on visual readings. Because his skin made
the doctor’s equipment go haywire, his buddy, Michael, who entered the Academy
with him, dubbed him “nuclear” and shortened that to the nickname Nuke. His
friend told everyone in their unit and the name stuck. After a time he put this
difference out of his mind . . . until he came here to Triton, one of the moons
around Neptune. He then had to go through the same tests and explanations all
over again. The medic here took him off duty until Nuke’s “antiquated test
results,” as he put it, arrived from Earth. Now Nuke waited, confined to
quarters.
“Yohanan, is it
really that important to you to be there?” His mother’s eyes watered. “We miss
you.”
Nuke shook his
head; he wasn’t sure his father missed him. They were always at odds. His
father—his whole family, for that matter—was old school, still looking for
Mashiach, the Messiah, to come. When he would pressure his father about this
issue, his father’s reply was always the same: It took four thousand years for
Mashiach to come the first time. Why would we think he’s late if it takes
another four thousand to return? Since the year was 3887, he could never argue
that point with his father.
“And don’t think
your father doesn’t miss you,” his mother said. “He will never say so, but I
see him every day. He definitely misses you.”
“Mom, I miss you
guys too. But I feel this is where I belong. I’m doing important work—work I
love.”
It wasn’t that
he didn’t believe in HaShem, one of the many Hebrew names for God literally
meaning The Name, or in his return. But to keep these old customs irritated him
to no end. Jerusalem had undergone a lot of changes over the centuries. For the
most part, Jerusalem was as modern as any other city. Yet there were sections,
like sections where his family lived, where people maintained that their
“history” was important to keep. Nuke felt he could no longer be part of that.
He had to experience life in this century—not cling to the past. Surely HaShem
was God of the future as well as God of the past. Surely.
Nuke jumped when
he heard a sudden knock on his portal opening.
Michael laughed.
“Jumpy, are we? Cap needs to see you.” He waved for Nuke to join him.
Nuke turned back
to his 2-D video feed. “Mom, sorry. I have to go. I’ll talk to you soon.” He
disconnected from the feed knowing that, with the time delay, it was useless to
wait for a response.
He swung his
legs over the side of his bunk, slipped his feet into his self-tightening
shoes, and followed Michael into the hallway. Michael had been his buddy pretty
much his entire life. Both looked similar: about the same height, same
semimuscular stature, and dark eyes. The main difference was Michael had dyed
his hair a brilliant yellow. Also, Michael was always the more outgoing of the
two. Nuke laughed to himself. Michael was the one who usually got them into
trouble, and he was the one who figured out how to get them out of it.
Nuke looked at
his yellow-haired friend. “Where are we heading?”
Michael grinned.
“Doc feels your nickname suits you.”
Nuke stopped in
his tracks. “Really? He’s cleared me already?” He squinted. “How do you know
this?”
Michael
shrugged. “Has to be. Cap said he wants us out to assemble the gate, which
arrived about oh-five-hundred.”
Nuke looked at his
chronometer. “That was three hours ago. Why are they waiting for us?”
“Beats me.”
Michael produced a wide grin. “Must mean Cap knows we’re the best.”
Nuke laughed.
“Yeah, that must be it.”
They walked down
the narrow corridor, turned left, and then right to a larger opening which
housed the station’s control center. Various people were at stations manning
all the functions of the center as well as surrounding space traffic. Captain
Bradley was signing something as they approached. He turned. “I just signed off
on your medical clearance,” he said to Nuke.
The captain
motioned with his head for them to follow him to the conference room.
As they entered,
two officers were already present and seated. Lieutenant Kinsey was a lithe and
beautiful woman. Her hair, almost jet black, cascaded onto her shoulders,
reflecting the light. She was likely one of the prettiest women Nuke had ever
seen. Yet she knew of her natural beauty and used it as a weapon of
intimidation. Sergeant Naftum also was seated. He was a little pudgy and
ordinary looking, yet Nuke always found him a decent fellow. They both stood as
Captain Bradley entered and nodded slightly.
Bradley motioned
for the four of them to sit. He pressed a button on the table and an entire
wall came to life with a view of the gate pieces in space above Triton. He
nodded to Lieutenant Kinsey.
She stood and
walked to the wall and pointed. “Each gate is composed of three pieces—”
“Each?” Nuke
squinted and looked over at Kinsey. “I only see three pieces. Where’s the other
gate?”
“Each gate,”
Kinsey continued, a little louder, seemingly annoyed by the interruption, “is
composed of three pieces that must be fused together to form a large triangle.
Currently each piece of each gate is bound to each other. Once the pieces are
fused, the two gates will be separated to function independently but be linked
so one will enter through one and exit the other. These gates will be three
times larger than the intra-solar gate near Saturn and the other one here
around Neptune.” She looked directly into Nuke’s eyes. “It’s a very dangerous
mission.”
Nuke glanced at
Michael, who swallowed hard. Michael scratched the back of his head. “What’s .
. . so hard about such a mission?” Michael asked.
Naftum spoke up.
“You have to thread the needle.”
Nuke looked his
way. “We have to what?”
Naftum grinned.
“Just like you did on Saturn station.”
Nuke looked at
Captain Bradley warily. Does he know about that?
The Captain
delivered a slight smile. “The notoriety of your antics precedes you even
though some things may not be in your official records.”
Naftum gave a
slight chuckle. “This time you’re given permission.”
Nuke looked at
Michael and raised his eyebrows.
Michael cleared
his throat. “Uh, so . . . what exactly are we given permission to do?”
Kinsey pointed
to a location on the wall map. “These cables must be threaded through each
piece to bind them together. The building crew can then properly mesh these
individual pieces together to form and power the interstellar gate.”
Nuke squinted.
He could barely see where Kinsley was pointing. “What’s the diameter of the
cables?”
“One meter.”
“And of the
eyelets?”
“Six meters.”
Michael coughed.
“That’s only about a meter on either side of each wing for clearance.”
Kinsey nodded.
“Hence the danger.”
Nuke ran his
hand across his mouth. This was going to be an even more audacious feat than
his and Michael’s stunt on Saturn. There they dodged rock fragments in Saturn’s
rings. Here there would be much less leeway for error.
The Captain
pressed another button on the conference table. A small door slid open and he
pulled out two discs. He handed one to Nuke and the other to Michael. “Study
these tonight and report back here at oh-seven-hundred ready to start.”
Each man took
the disc and nodded. Michael gave Nuke a wide-eyed look but made no other
gesture. Still, that spoke volumes. Who else but the two of them would be
stupid enough, and reckless enough, to accept such a mission?
Nuke grinned to himself. He loved challenges like this.
TWL: What part of the book was the most fun to write?
Randy: I think when Nuke first met Ti’Sulh was fun to write. Nuke had never considered meeting other lifeforms even though he was a pilot in the Interstellar Exploration Federation. Here he was on an alien planet with someone looking completely different from him and whose language he did not understand. He had no way of knowing their intentions. It was fun to think through all that would be going through his mind in that situation, how he would act, and how he would attempt to communicate. I think readers will like this scenario as written. It has serious parts as well as humorous ones. One can feel Nuke’s heartache when it dawns on him that he will likely never get back home. Then, Nuke finds that having body hair is considered gross by these aliens. The alien coats Nuke’s body with a type of foam. As the foam begins to solidify, he has a panicked thought of undergoing full body waxing. He is relieved when it simply washes off.
TWL: What’s one fact about your book that would surprise people?
Randy: Each alien clan has only one piece of a prophecy, so each clan feels they have the most important part of the prophecy. This is written as a corollary to how we humans have different ways of worshipping and interpreting the Bible, and each feel they have the correct interpretation when each likely focuses on only part of scripture when they think they have interpreted all of scripture.
TWL: What other books are you working on and when will they be published?
Randy: I am currently working on a series called The Adversary Chronicles. Each book takes a Bible story and tells it in a way that is very nontraditional. Readers have likely not heard these stories told as I have done so. The first book of this series has just recently been released entitled The Rebellion in the Stones of Fire. It shows how the Flood in the book of Genesis was really about God’s love and not about his judgment. I think this book and others will give readers a different perspective they may not have considered about stories they have often heard. There is no heresy, but each story provides thought-provoking ideas for readers to contemplate.
Two previous series have also been published. One, The Coded Message Trilogy, is about a dystopian world where an astrophysicist, working on a Mars mission, discovers his world is more evil than he ever thought possible. The second series, Stele Prophecy Pentalogy, is composed of five stories about end time prophecy. It answers many questions as to how a coming kingdom will be established and how it will function.
There is also a nonfiction book, entitled Why is a Gentile World Tied to a Jewish Timeline? It compares the Bible to a good novel and how it unfolds into a cohesive story and tells how we are all connected.
TWL: Finally, what message are you trying to get across with your book?
Randy: First, it is about enjoyment. I want readers who love science fiction stories to be entertained as they read the trilogy. I also hope readers will ponder the corollary that is implied and realize that we can have unity through diversity.
TWL: Do you have any final words?
Randy: Some have stated that this story reminds them of James Cameron’s movie Avatar. I think the reason is not that it is like that storyline, but the story takes one’s mind on a journey that is so different from what we currently know. I can’t say that everyone will see it that way, but some have. I think everyone who likes science fiction and likes to view stories from a Christian perspective will enjoy this story. Also, I have received feedback from other readers who do not necessarily enjoy science fiction but loved this series because they said it was so thought-provoking. Therefore, one may enjoy it even if they are not science-fiction buffs.
Title: ERABON PROPHECY TRILOGY
Author: Randy C. Dockens
Publisher: Carpenter’s Son Publishing
Genre: Christian Science Fiction
BOOK BLURB:
An exciting trilogy where an astronaut, nicknamed Nuke and working on an interstellar gate, is accidentally thrown so deep into the universe there is no way for him to get home. He does, however, find life on a nearby planet, one in which the citizens look very different from him.
Although tense at first, he finds these aliens think he is the forerunner to the return of their deity and has been charged with reuniting the clans living on six different planets. What is stranger to him still is that while everything seems so foreign from anything he has ever experienced, there is an element that also feels extremely familiar.
He has to gain the trust from each alien clan and demonstrate through various acts that he is the one they have been waiting for so each culture can fully accept him and follow him. But for the aliens to accept him as the prophet to their deity, Erabon, he has to first accept it and believe it himself.
Book Information
Release Dates: Book One: Myeem: 23-Dec-2020
Book Two: Sharab: 06-Apr-2021
Book Three: Qerach: 01-Oct-2021
Publisher: Carpenter’s Son Publishing
Number of pages: Myeem/271; Sharab/249; Qerach/347
Link to books on Amazon:
Book One: Myeem: Amazon.com: Myeem: Book One of the Erabon Prophecy Trilogy (Erabon Prophecy Trilogy, 1): 9781952025129: Randy C Dockens: Books
Book Two: Sharab: Sharab: Book Two of the Erabon Prophecy Trilogy (Erabon Prophecy Trilogy, 2): Dockens, Randy C: 9781952025136: Amazon.com: Books
Book Three: Qerach: Qerach: Book Three of the Erabon Prophecy Trilogy (Erabon Prophecy Trilogy, 3): Dockens, Randy C: 9781952025143: Amazon.com: Books
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