When Kevin Murphy tells stories, he sometimes surprises even himself.
His recently published The Jendorra Boxes supposes a world where unknown malevolent forces bet on the destruction of earth while a group of young people must learn to understand themselves and act for the greater good.
“When I started writing the books, I had no idea, no plan. That goes back to when I would create stories for my children. They would tell me what they wanted in the story and I would tell it,” said Murphy, a psychologist who has a practice specializing in working with children and youth. “I knew I wanted to write about the kind of world we want to have. I see that the children and teens in my practice are aware of the world and concerned but at the same time, they have their own concerns and do not necessarily feel a lot of hope for the world.”
Murphy made his own belief that hope comes from a person’s own actions, what they can do in their own lives for change. As the teens in the book become aware that they must change themselves, they see the world around them change. This makes the unseen powers increase their destructive interference in the world.
The teens must learn from the Jendorra boxes, the initial source of the messages about the alien influences, and points of inspirational energy at critical points. Each box represents characteristics, like truth and intuition, that help the youth.
Murphy, who has worked on the books for the past 10 years, taking every third week off from his practice to write, said one of the surprises in the book was the character development.
“I had thought some of the aliens would be nice but I found out by the 15th chapter that I didn’t like them. All of the characters represent parts of us, what we do as a human species with ourselves and the planet. Human beings have the potential to save through their actions and choices and to inspire others,” he said.
He had several young people read the story as it progressed and incorporated their suggestions for the story line and dialogue.
“There was a great sense of satisfaction in seeing the books completed, not just their physical presence, all aspects of them. I assembled a team of really good professionals to work with me,” he said.
“Now there is the huge challenge of marketing, which I look at as forming connections with people who might enjoy the book. People who are reading the books tell me that they are reaffirming. At one meet-the-author event, a teenager who said she wanted to write bought the books and I hope I can encourage her with her writing.”
He doesn’t know what will happen next but he is happy that he wrote the books, remembering his mother’s favourite saying, “You can’t determine how long you live but you can determine how wide you live.”
“Long before I was a psychologist, I wanted to be a storyteller. I will always write,” said Murphy, adding that he has some ideas for books for pre-teen readers and is creating a presentation for parents for preparing children for the challenges of the world, which he might put into book form.
Murphy will be at a meet-the-author event for The Jendorra Boxes Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Bookland in Vernon. For more information contact him at kndnyn@telus.net or www.jendorra.com or www.ragungi.com.
