1. Let’s start simple. Who is A. Kwarta in your own words?
I grew up filling notebooks under my bed with stories that lived in my head. As I rekindled a passion for reading in my thirties, I realized that maybe I had a chance to create some worlds that I hadn’t found in pages yet. Any readers who connect with my books will just be an incredibly massive bonus!
📘 About the Book
2. Beyond the Dome opens with one impulsive decision that changes everything. What inspired the initial moment that sets Leah’s journey in motion?
A feeling that friendship is sometimes worth so much more than family; Leah channels that protective instinct to save her friends, impulsively putting any consequences she might endure on a backburner. I just wanted to test her – her friends did something reckless, but with heart, and she went to bat for them.
3. Leah grows up inside a labor dome, shielded from the outside world. What drew you to the idea of confinement versus freedom as a central concept?
I just wanted freedom to look scary at first, because honestly it is. But the scary things in life are usually the experiences that are most worth the effort. I wanted Leah to be scared but to finally live; her life in the confinement of the dome wasn’t much of a life at all.
4. The world beyond the dome is dangerous, strategic, and unforgiving. How did you approach building this dystopian setting and its power structures?
I wish I could say I had an awesome outline with goals of who would control what aspects of the world in Beyond the Dome, but I really pantsed it. I didn’t want it to be a two-party system, so I made sure to throw in a third, equally-as-powerful faction, and I let them all have a voice. They sort of evolved on their own? I know, I’m weird, but my characters tell me the story sometimes. The same goes for the world, it just sort of fell into place.
5. Leah encounters Scouts, tradesmen, the Upper Allegiance, and vigilantes. Which faction was the most interesting—or challenging—for you to write?
I think the Scouts were the toughest for me, because I want them to be seen as the scum that they are, but I also tried to humanize a few moments for them. Being dystopian, the world is chaotic anyway. And they’re definitely on the wrong side of right, if you know what I mean. But they still have senses of humor, they still have camaraderie (amongst themselves)... it was hard for me to make them anything but heinous, but I didn’t want our vigilantes to look like purely good guys so I made some likeable baddies. I hope.
⚔️ Characters & Themes
6. Leah starts as an ordinary, law-abiding citizen and is forced to adapt quickly. How does her character evolve throughout the story?
I like to think that she breaks out of her shell. She is a quiet, curious, kindhearted person in the dome. She doesn’t lose her sense of self, but she learns how to dig deeply to find out what her actual limits are. I liked aligning her with the Allegiance way of life, to show that maybe the Dome Dwellers and the folks who live beyond aren’t as different as they’d expect.
7. Found family plays a major role in Beyond the Dome. Why was that theme important to include in Leah’s journey?
As readers will discover, families are a whole tiny subplot in my series. Leah doesn’t have much of one, biologically. So when she is forced away from the world she knew in those concrete walls, it was important for me to give her something – a safety net, a cause to keep going – something. Her found family becomes everything.
8. Survival, sacrifice, and setting an example are all key ideas in the story. What message or questions did you hope readers would take away?
Is it wrong to say part of me just wants the readers to fall in love with a story and the characters who tell it? But I guess the bigger message throughout it is just about finding what is important to you, and who is important to you, and building a life around that. The mission the Allegiance strives for throughout the entire trilogy is to make the world a better place than it was in the past. They want a better future. Whether they get that future or not, the readers will have to wait and see, but I wanted there to at least be hope that nothing is set in stone.
🧠 The Writing Process
9. As a longtime reader and writer releasing your debut novel, what emotions did you experience while writing and preparing Beyond the Dome for publication?
NERVES. So many nerves. I never shared my writing with anyone before this, I’d always hidden that as a secret hobby, so it was terrifying to intentionally give my manuscript to others for them to tear it apart and help me make it something that the world might want to peek at. But it’s also thrilling, and honestly I can’t wait to do it as many times as I possibly can.
10. Did any characters, scenes, or plot points surprise you as you were writing?
Yes. I actually had no idea that the book was going to end the way it did. Honestly. That wasn’t what I had planned or expected, but it just poured out onto the page when I was working on it and I couldn’t take it back after that. Some of my ARC readers said it wrecked them, in a “can’t wait for book #2 way” so I will graciously be thankful that the ending came out the way it did.
11. How did you balance action, strategy, and emotional moments throughout the story?
I wanted there to be enough action to keep things moving. I mean, this world is a mess of constant hunter/prey dynamics, so I just wanted to aim for some sort of equilibrium of action and downtime. I wanted the readers to learn who my characters were, what motivated them, I wanted them to see how they interacted during adrenaline highs vs. some more peaceful lows. It was all about just trying to put myself into a reader’s shoes: are they getting enough of a well-rounded picture to actually care about the people on the pages? I hope the end results hit that mark.
⚡ Rapid Fire (Quick Vibes)
12. Character-driven or plot-driven stories?
Character-driven (i think?) I love my characters
13. Favorite dystopian or sci-fi book or series?
Ahhh…. Shade’s Children by Garth Nix, or…. Germ by Robert Liparulo…… wait, Dies the Fire by S.M. Stirling? Don’t make me choose….
14. Writing soundtrack, silence, or background noise?
Tunes. Always tunes. When I say anything goes, I mean it. My big brother is an opera singer, so I will jam out with NF, hum along to Hardy, or I’ll fire up some Andrew Lloyd Webber tracks. I just can’t stand total silence when I’m writing.
15. One word you hope readers use to describe Beyond the Dome.
Addicting! (Let’s be real here, I’d settle for any word that isn’t “horrible”, please and thank you)
🚀 Looking Ahead
16. Beyond the Dome is book one of a trilogy. What can readers expect as the series continues (without spoilers)?
The profanity lessens, but the plots thicken. These books get darker as the trilogy progresses, but they’re funneling towards the same goal: a better tomorrow. It’s just a matter of what battles they have to fight to find their fate.
17. How far ahead have you planned the trilogy, and has that vision changed since writing book one?
That vision absolutely has shifted off and on; as I mentioned, I didn’t know the first one would end the way it did, and that made me rethink just what path the whole story could take. Book 2 is written, it just needs to be cleaned up a bit more before it goes into edits. And Book 3 is about ¾ of the way into existence. So, I’m hoping to get the whole series out to readers in 2026, if at all possible. I won’t make anyone wait longer than they have to if they want to find out how things end.
18. What excites you most about officially stepping into the author world with this debut?
It’s super cheesy, but it’s just so fun to check that box off of a childhood bucket list. Even if my book finds one reader who connects with it? Gosh, that is just the most amazing idea. Writing lets us share daydreams with others, and I’m so excited to see where it leads.
🖤 Just for Fun
19. If Leah could give one piece of advice to readers, what would it be?
Fight for your friends. Even if you doubt yourself, fight for them.
20. If Beyond the Dome were adapted, would you want it as a movie or a series—and why?
Movie would work, honestly. I don’t think it’s epic in length enough to be a series, but I think each book of the trilogy would need it’s own. So, you know, if there’s a dream cast who wants to bring this to life, I’m all in….
