Brandon Phillips - Suspense-Filled, High-Tech Thriller

Posted on 7th of July, 2021 by Naomi Bolton

Brandon dove into writing seriously in the last few years while traveling across the globe in the US Navy, and as a propulsion service technician. He has worked onboard many types of sailing vessels, in several technical roles, from tugboats to drill ships: including submarines. Brandon’s lifelong addiction to reading spans the universes between Westerns to Space Operas. Elements from these many genres are forged together to form the base material in The Texian Armada Saga: a contemporary hi-tech thriller tale of asymmetrical naval warfare, intrigue, and adventure, based around the Gulf Coast. He currently lives in the Houston Metro Area with his wife and two children. When he is not writing he enjoys making sawdust working on custom handmade pens, knives, and guitars. As our Author of the Day, he tells us all about his book, Foreign & Domestic.

Please give us a short introduction to what Foreign & Domestic: Book 1 is about

Foreign & Domestic is a suspense-filled military thriller novel that puts the reader right on the front lines of a battle between an unlikely group of Veteran friends and a major terrorist plot aimed at American soil. Through tough decisions and several battles, this semi-secret operation takes place over multiple continents proving that freedom doesn’t come free and the vigilant can never take a day off.

What inspired you to write this story? Was there anything in particular that made you want to tackle this?

I served 10 years in the US Navy as a submariner myself. There were a lot of difficult times in my military career, but I made a lot of wonderful memories as well. Some of the events in this novel were taken from my own life experiences – some, I took the liberty of embellishing to enhance the story. I would like to think that much of the Foreign & Domestic story is plausible: from the characters, the plot lines, not-so-distant-future tech. This story is just the first of several stories that I’ve been wanting to bring to life for a number of years. I have so many more that I want to share.

Why did you decide to bring a global conspiracy into the story?

I believe that sometimes a story just writes itself. The grand scope of the conspiracy came together through character development. When I was writing the major turning point in the story, I discovered just how big of a web was involved a few keystrokes before the team did.

Why did you pick a team of veterans as your protagonists?

In short, this is an area in which I have a lot of knowledge and experience. It is not uncommon for veterans to have a rough time fitting in with civilian society. They are perfect for this type of mission because they are used to deployments and being ready for action whenever necessary. There is a common mantra that although you may no longer wear the uniform, the oath to “support and defend…” has no expiration date. That is where the tagline, “A Warrior’s Work is Never Done” stems from.

Tell us more about Cameron Grey. What makes him tick?

Cameron Grey (AKA Cam) is highly creative, flexible and analytical. His personality traits are many of the reasons he became the de-facto leader of the group. He is constantly trying to make processes more efficient, and improve upon himself as well. As the leader, he expects the same initiative and drive for perfection out of those around him. – This doesn’t always go over well with everyone he meets and ironically his strengths cause a lot of conflict with other characters in moments where there isn’t time to spare.

Besides writing, what other secret skills do you have?

The first thing I bought when I left Boot Camp was a guitar. I own several now and have even built a custom one for myself. I also enjoy hockey and soccer. Since moving to Texas, I have taken up a few hobbies including smoking (grilling) and handcrafting custom writing pens and knives.

In which way has your own experience in the US Navy influenced this story?

A large portion of the story has been influenced by my personal experience, years served and the people I have met along the way. I’ve spent long months onboard a submarine with 150+ men, and weeks on drillships with men & women from every corner of the World. If that doesn’t change a person, I don’t know what does. While offshore and on dry land, I served as a technician, working with radar, sonar and various operating systems.

Tell us more about the cover and how it came about.

I wanted something that immediately grabbed the reader’s attention, drew them into the story but was also pleasing to look at. There are a lot of covers out on the market that do none of those things! It took several back and forth edits with my artist to reach the final design, because I really wanted the right vessel to be featured on the cover… I didn’t realize what a challenge that it would be. There are a lot of things that only a submariner would notice in the details, but it was important to me that they were correct. I’m very pleased with the work that went into it and the results that we achieved.

What was your greatest challenge when writing this book?

I loved the actual writing part… My biggest hiccups were in the pre-publishing stages. Editing was probably the most gruesome part for me. Then, there was also the logistics aspect of writing a book: choosing the right programs, finding the designers, and formatting specifications. Everything should get easier with each new book and a whole let less experimentation to do.

Readers say your book is really action-packed. How did you pull this off?

High action literature is is the type of book that I grew up reading – and I still enjoy reading it now. It is also steeped in what I know both from my professional and personal life – not just the ship-to-ship combat, but the gun-slinging, knife-fights, and even martial arts.

This is book one of a series. Can it be read as a standalone? How do the other books in the series tie in with this one?

Foreign & Domestic CAN stand on its own, yes… but after you go through a few adventures with Cam and his team, you’ll want to see where their missions take them next. Many of my readers have voiced that they can’t wait to see what happens in the next book, but I haven’t revealed any spoilers yet. Future books will be packed with more action, a fierce love of liberty and the desire for protection of life as we know it.

Do you have any interesting writing habits? What is an average writing day like for you?

I have a wonderful full-time day job. I also have a family and two dogs at home - I’ve written this book in the random late-night hours and weekends in-between regular life. I always have a large cup of veteran-owned coffee on my desk with me.

What are you working on right now?

In the last week or so I have outlined the first ten chapters of the 2nd book in the Texian Armada series. My aim is to publish it early next year, right after the holidays. With my publishing, my dad has decided to finally take a real shot at writing his own novel (likely to be a crime thriller), so I will also be helping him through the stages to self-publish.