Aaron Ryan

Tell us a little bit about yourself, your hobbies and interests.

I live in Washington with my wife and two sons, along with Macy the dog, Winston the cat, and Merry & Pippin, the finches. I am the author of the bestselling "Dissonance" 6-book alien invasion saga, the post-apocalyptic Christian fiction saga "The End," the sci-fi thrillers "Forecast" and "The Slide," the children's picture books "The Ring of Truth," "The Sword of Joy" and "The Book of Power," the business reference business books "How to Successfully Self-Publish & Promote Your Self-Published Book" and "The Superhero Anomaly", 6 business books on voiceovers penned under my former stage name (Joshua Alexander), as well as a previous fictional novel, "The Omega Room." When I was in second grade, I was tasked with writing a creative assignment: a fictional book. And thus, "The Electric Boy" was born: a simple novella full of intrigue, fantasy, and 7-year-old wits that electrified my desire to write. From that point forward, I evolved into a creative soul that desired to create. I enjoy the arts, media, music, performing, poetry, and being a daddy. In my lifetime I have been an author, voiceover artist, wedding videographer, stage performer, musician, producer, rock/pop artist, executive assistant, service manager, paperboy, CSR, poet, tech support, worship leader, and more. The diversity of my life experiences gives me a unique approach to business, life, ministry, faith, and entertainment. As such I'm also a longtime speaker, panelist, and blogger. My favorite author by far is J.R.R. Tolkien, but I also enjoy Suzanne Collins, James S.A. Corey, Michael Crichton, Marie Lu, Madeleine L'Engle, John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Tim Lebbon, Christopher Golden, C.S. Lewis, Stephen King and Dave Barry. I have always had a passion for storytelling. Visit my website at https://www.authoraaronryan.com, the Dissonance saga website at https://www.dissonancetheseries.com, or The End saga website at https://thisisnottheend.com.

When and why did you start writing books?

Well, I started when I was 8 as a writing assignment in 2nd grade, but really I RE-started during my voiceover career in 2019. That ballooned into 6 voiceover books. I returned to writing in 2023 as my voiceover career started to crumble due to economy, AI, lowballing clients, underbidding colleagues, the SAG-Aftra strike, etc.. I very much enjoy being a parallel storyteller: my OWN stories (much preferred), and others' as a voiceover artist.

What made you decide to tackle writing as a career?

I simply love reading a good story, but even more, telling a good story. There's something incredibly immersive and moving about a good story.

Which one of your books or characters is your favourite?

I thoroughly love and appreciate the heart behind Dissonance Volume Zero: Revelation, but Forecast is a favorite due to what a mindbender it is. However, as i'm knee-deep in "THE END" trilogy, they are my current favorites. Ha! I suppose whatever my current WIP is, that's my favorite.

Which one of your books was the hardest to write and stretched you the most as a writer?

Dissonance Volume III: Renegade was incredibly difficult due to all the military research I needed to do. There was a ton of it! I'm so grateful for the help I received from a 35-year retired Naval captain of an aircraft carrier, a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force, 2 senior airmen in the air force, and a retired Army chopper pilot. Really grateful for Google, too, although please don't check my internet history as I'll probably come off like a terrorist.

Who is your favourite author and book?

JRR Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings. Simply put, it is the uncontested quintessential work of fantasy fiction. It is utterly engrossing and I've read it over 200x in my lifetime.

What book are you reading right now?

My own! Going through a full all-in-one copy of the Dissonance hexalogy and proofing one final time, well after the release of the first one, for any errors, so that I can just rerelease a more polished version without any errors whatsoever. I'm a perfectionist.

Where do you get your inspiration for your books?

Movies, mainly. I'm a visual receiver. My wife and I watched I Am Legend the night before I put pen to paper for Dissonance Volume I: Reality. I was utterly inspired by the notion of an unmanaged, unmaintenanced world since the custodians had been taken out of the way. I wanted to see something like that but not from zombies or a virus; rather, from an alien invasion.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

Writing, writing, and more writing. But also writing. :-) Seriously though, anything with my kids, especially Wii, movies, swimming, walking, going to see exciting places, vacation trips, etc.. I also enjoy walking and running, and reading. Oh! I nearly forgot to include writing!

Do you have any new books in the works?

I'm currently working on Books #28, 29 & 30, a post-apocalyptic clean Christian fiction end-times series. It is GOOD. Can't wait to release the first one on March 4th, 2025, and the rest to follow! This is my big series for this year!