Author Highlight: Michael Thomas Perone

DayDreaming
May 2
4 min read

Introduce Yourself

I’m an award-winning author who has written for The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore City Paper, Long Island Voice (a spinoff of The Village Voice), and The Island Ear (now titled Long Island Press), among others. Online, I’ve written for Fatherly, Yahoo!, WhatCulture!, and other websites that don’t end with an exclamation mark. My debut novel, the action-adventure Danger Peak, was the recipient of multiple awards, including The Fall 2022 BookFest Award in the category of Young Adult — Action and Adventure.

Name of Your Book

Danger Peak

Book Summary

What's on top of Danger Peak? That's what thirteen-year-old Robert Kin and his two best friends, wisecracking and loyal Chris and sweet but put-upon Rinnie, want to find out in their small suburban town of the late 1980s. The three teens are members of the motorbike-racing club the Wild Boars, and with the inadvertent help of their eccentric technology teacher, Dr. Howard (who prefers to be called “Doctor,” not “Mister,” thank you very much), they build Robert a better, faster, and stronger dirt bike—piece by piece. Haunted by flashbacks of his older brother Danny, who died trying to scale Danger Peak the year before, Robert becomes obsessed with conquering the magical mountain. For the respect of his friends and school, and with the aid of his improved Action Bike, he discovers what lies beyond the peak of the mountain—and maybe even beyond the bounds of Earth itself. Filled with humor, adventure, and, most importantly, heart, Danger Peak is an inspiring story about what it takes to achieve your dreams—and what it means to feel alive.

Where did the idea or characters in your story come from? Are they inspired by real life?

Since you ask later on what the idea was that inspired my story, I'll answer the question about the characters in my book. Robert's two best friends are based on the two best friends I had growing up. Of course, I exaggerated them to make it more entertaining for the reader–as well as fit the story better–but the essence of their personalities are the same. For example, Chris is based on a friend who was loyal but still brashly confident, and Rinnie was based on a friend who was a bit of a wimp but a true friend to the end. Also, he loved playing Nintendo–and still does! Dr. Howard is based on a music teacher I had in high school who refused to answer your question if you addressed him as "Mister." He would only respond if you called him "Doctor," even though he only had a doctorate in music. At the time, I thought this personality foible was highly annoying, but flashforward 30 years, and it's funny, so I put it into the personality of the quasi-villain of my story.

Why do you think stories are so important for kids and families today?

Not to sound pretentious, but society has evolved through storytelling, from the earliest days of cavemen entertaining themselves by the campfire to the big-budget blockbusters of the silver screen today. But I feel only books can capture that quiet, intimate feeling of directly connecting with a story on a deeply personal level.

What was the spark or idea that led to this book?

I was inspired by three major sources when writing Danger Peak: the old-school, 8-bit Nintendo game Excitebike; the many misadventures I had riding my bike with my friends growing up; and, unfortunately, the death of my brother when I was 8 years old. Danger Peak is based on a short story I wrote over 35 years ago when I was 11 years old. Having written the main beats of the story when I was a child myself helped capture the preadolescent tone of the book, and I believe it will help connect with young readers today, as well as hook nostalgia-minded adults who grew up on George Lucas and Steven Spielberg adventures and are longing for the simpler, “totally awesome” time of the ‘80s when the book is set.

What do you hope readers feel or think about after finishing this book?

I hope they appreciate the people in their lives who have shaped them and made them who they are. Those people aren't going to be around forever. I also hope Robert's adventure inspires them to have and follow their own dreams. Finally, I hope they agree that wallowing in childhood nostalgia shouldn't be a stigma.

What’s something readers might not know about what goes into writing your book?

I spend way more time structuring and restructuring the book, and thinking about how the story will play out, than actually writing the book. Writing the book is almost the easy part. Figuring out how to go from Point A to Point Triple Z is the most difficult.

Why do you believe imagination and creativity matter so much?

Imagination and creativity are everything, especially when it comes to writing. After all, writing is making it up as you go along. I always say imagination is way more important than intelligence. I'm not the smartest guy in the world, but I can come up with a pretty good story.

What advice would you give to someone looking to write in your genre?

I would say to keep writing, even if you're struggling. As long as you enjoy writing and the process is still fun, never give up. To me, financial success isn't as important as personal fulfillment; this writing career of mine has been a dream come true.

What do you think makes a story unforgettable? As a child or adult?

In my opinion, a story needs a good hook and characters who are easy to relate to and root for. You can be the most brilliant writer in the world, but if there's no clear story in your book, it's not going to impress many readers.

What was it like to hear your book come to life as an audiobook?

It was amazing! I loved the sound effects, especially the sound of Robert's Turbo Charger roaring to life. To me, it was as close to "Danger Peak: The Movie" as you could get–for now!

Where can readers find your work and follow along with your next project? (Provide Your Links)

You can sign up for my blog and receive a free PDF of my book Lists, Life, and Other Unimportant Details, which collects my best blogs and published articles over the past 25 years, here: www.michaelthomasperone.com.

The following are my socials: