Jay O ’ Keefe grew up in Maryland , raised primarily on video games , anime , and fantasy novels . Though he had always wanted to work in game design or art , he eventually turned to writing . He decided to bring his childhood to life in his writing by crafting a fantasy novel that read like a video game , all while evoking a manga splash page in the reader ’ s mind . When not writing or drawing , Jay spends time with his wife and son , or is buried within the myriad of pets his wife and son bring home that he ( not-so ) secretly loves .