Tom Arnold is the author of The Digital Detective: First Intervention, a new novel for older kids. He has worked in the cybersecurity field for many years.
Q: What inspired you to write The Digital Detective: First Intervention, and how did you create your characters Jason and Reba?
A: Two real events started me on this journey. First, I was already writing short stories in the form of a case log for the older Jason Palmer. These covered his adventures as an adult after working at the NSA.
The second event gave me a bit of a fright. About six months before I started the current Digital Detective series, my 7-year-old grandson had a scare. While playing a very popular online game, the avatar of another character appeared on his screen. The avatar held up a sign asking for my grandson’s name and location.
My grandson’s parents are very savvy when it comes to cybersecurity and had all the parental controls activated on the game. Even though these controls were active, the avatar—controlled by an unknown individual—could still hold up signs to try and get information.
Thankfully, my grandson immediately went to his mom and showed her what happened. Nothing came of it because he sought help right away.
As a professor teaching in a graduate cybersecurity program, I’ve always stressed the importance of cyber hygiene. The idea came to me to write a young adult novel featuring two teenagers who inadvertently fight cyberterrorism, as a way to expose youth—differently—to the pitfalls of modern internet technologies.
Q: Did you know how the story would end before you started writing it, or did you make many changes along the way?
A: Yes. Having worked a bit with screenplays, I constructed a beat board that outlined each chapter and took the story to its conclusion. While developing the beat board with the help of a top screenwriting tool, I actually started with the last chapter and then worked backward to the beginning.
After refining the beats, I was ready to put “pen to paper,” so to speak, and wrote the full novel in about four months.
As for changes, my motto is “the ink never dries.” During the mechanical rewrite of the book (a screenwriting step), I realized that a few events had to be removed or dramatically changed.
I then retained the services of one of the best editors I’ve ever had the pleasure to work with—Alexis Scott. She and another trusted reader did a fabulous job spotting not only language issues but continuity problems. That led to the polishing rewrite (another screenwriting technique) and the final text.
Q: As a cybersecurity expert, did you need to do any additional research to write the book?
A: I did research to develop the backstories of the main and supporting characters, including visiting Bristol, UK, where Jason and his family were from. I visited police stations where Jason’s father may have worked and even visited the primary school Jason would have attended before relocating to San Jose, California.
For Reba, her backstory places her family’s move to San Jose at the end of the Vietnam War. They were refugees who settled in the city’s large Vietnamese community. Reba and her sister, CaCee, were born and raised in San Jose. It just so happens that JP’s family bought the house next door to the Ng family, and Reba and JP became friends.
Given my experience in the cybersecurity industry and as a digital forensic investigator, I wanted the technical elements of the story to be accurate. To achieve this, I developed test environments and performed all the activities that JP uses in the story. All tools, techniques, and procedures JP uses are real.
Furthermore, most of the stories are fictionalized but derived from actual cases I’ve experienced in my past and during my studies at the university where I teach.
Q: What do you hope readers take away from the story?
A: The book includes basic safety tips for both kids and adults. Beyond that, I’m trying to expose readers to the world of digital forensics and how technology is here to stay.
My hope is that some young readers will be inspired to learn more about the subject. At a minimum, I hope they become more aware of the real-world online threats that affect us all.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: The adventures of JP and Reba continue in Book Two. I’m hoping to have this story completed and released by Christmas 2025. This second book tackles two very important topics: sextortion and human trafficking.
These topics can be explored through a dark storyline, but I hope to present them in a lighter and more educational manner. If I can prevent even one case of bullying or sextortion from happening, it will be a win.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: The second book won’t be the end of The Digital Detective’s adventures. I have many stories and case journals in my library waiting to be told.
It’s also very important to highlight the illustrator of the book. My goal was to follow an old-fashioned structure reminiscent of when Sir Arthur Conan Doyle penned the Sherlock Holmes stories—each chapter began with a pen-and-ink illustration.
As I finished the first Digital Detective book, I was fortunate to be working with a famous animation director on a project for Cloud 10 Studios, LLC called The Greatest Gift. Beyond being a film director, Gary is also a gifted storyteller and storyboard artist (see his IMDB). His cartoon style is unique and brings personality to all the drawings. Gary agreed to create the illustrations featured throughout the book.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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