Dee Rose was born and raised in Gary, Indiana. He has two daughters, Nadia, and Nicole. He served four and a half years in the Navy. He now resides in Denver, Colorado where he majored in Political Science at Metropolitan State University. He also received an Associates Degree from the Community College of Aurora. He laughs when he remembers the origin of the Hangman Universe. He says, “It was originally a rap song that I’d created. Now, along with my girls, the HMU has become the center of his world”.
1. Who is Dee Rose and how long have you been writing?
I am a guy who loves to write fantasy novels because I love comic books. I’ve probably
seen every comic movie ever created and more than seventy-five percent of TV shows
based off comic books. I was born and raised in Gary, Indiana and joined the US Navy
right after high school. I moved to Denver once I was honorably discharged and got a
degree from the Community College of Aurora and studied Political Science at Metro
State University. I have two beautiful daughters named Nadia and Nicole.
I’ve been writing off and on for about thirty years. I started with poetry, then rap, then
back to poetry, and finally, novels. Yes, its been an incredible journey to get to where
I’ve been writing non-stop for a decade.
2. What was your inspiration behind the Hangman series?
My inspiration behind The Hangman series first was developed in one of my raps called The
Hangman. Once I decided to focus on writing, I thought bringing the Hangman to life in a
novel would be great. I was also working on another novel about a vampire slayer. I ran out
of material for The Hangman and combined both stories. The Hangman Universe could just
as easily be named after Jericho Caine, the vampire slayer.
3. The first thing that caught my eyes when you asked me to review your book was the cover.
I went ahead and looked at the different covers from the series. My Favorite cover is, The
Death Brothers, book eight in the series. Where did the idea for your covers come from?
The idea for my covers came about because I knew what the characters looked like in
my mind, but I wasn’t sure how to get my cover designer to portray them. So, I decided
to represent most of the covers with the villains. However, I did want the three
Hangman covers to be all about him.
4. The Hangman series is a ten-book series. How did you go about planning out a ten-
book series and what was the hardest part when it came to writing a series this long?
I initially wanted to have a three-book series like a movie trilogy. However, when I finished
the first Hangman book, I wanted to expand his world beyond the characters that survived
the first book. So, I asked my friend Panhnha Tran to come up with another character. He
came up with The Grand Librarian, Alexander Merryweather. Even though it may seem as
though I like writing about magic, I wasn’t sure I could write about a wizard. But I took on the
challenge anyway and created a stand-alone book for him.
Then, I wanted to write stand-alone books about the remaining heroes from the first
Hangman book. That meant that I had to write stories for the vampire slayer, Jericho Caine,
the demon hunter, Father Tom Padilla, and The Bad Angel (BA). I dropped easter eggs in
each book related to the Hangman Universe (HMU). However, that put the number at five
books in total with my most hated number, six, being what I envisioned the final book being,
The Hangman Returns.
I loved those books and the world I’d created, so I introduced a new hero, Susan Taki, and
a new and more powerful leader of the underworld, called Leechadon. That book set the
stage for another stand-alone book for The Grand Librarian. I combined a storyline for
Jericho Caine and Father Tom Padilla, who’d realized they were reincarnated supernatural
policemen, known as the Death Brothers. Then, I wanted to try my hand at writing an entire
book for a female hero, and so I created a stand-alone book for Susan Taki. Once I finished
The Grand Librarian: The Future Wizards (HMU book 7), I knew I wanted to end the series
at ten. I knew the Hangman couldn’t stay the cool anti-hero and had return to the main
villain of the series. And I knew that if any hero survived, it would my favorite one. But I
won’t ruin the ending. Haha.
5. How long did it take you to write The Hangman series??
It took me about eight years to write the Hangman series. Some say that’s a fast turn-
around. But once I started writing, I was possessed and couldn’t stop. I published two,
sometimes three books a year.
6. I'm sure writing this lengthy series you came across a lot of writer`s block. What advice
can you give people when it comes to handling writer's block?
My battle with writers block came right after the first book. It last a couple years. If it wasn’t
for my friend coming up with The Grand Librarian character, the HMU wouldn’t exist in its
current form. My advice to writers in dealing with writer’s block is to simply enjoy writing the
book as much as you want your readers to enjoying reading it. I can honestly say that I had
a smile on face and was excited most of the time I was writing the series.
7. What are some current works you are working on now?
Right now, I have a science fiction saga on Kindle Vella entitled, Hut-Yo Cull: The Hunt
Begins, about a female bounty hunter who must gather allies in her quest to put an end to
the rule of a powerful intergalactic armada, known as the Merciless. I’m also working on a
follow up to my novel Cloning Around. The hero from that book, an FBI agent, has a knew
adventure in a novel called, Agent Robert Bassett: Accepting Commonology. In it, a new
religion has formed and tries to wipeout the other religions. The problem is that people all
over the world are joining the new religion and Robert must expose it for its too late. I’m also
working on a book called, The Bad Guys, about a group of five people with abilities that
uses them for evil, hence the title. It’s a very dark and gritty book.
8. Any advice you can give other writers?
My advice for writers is to keep writing as long as you enjoy it, and I guarantee, your
readers will enjoy it too. Don’t worry about the editing until the end. First things first. You’ve
got to get the story out of your head.
9. Where can people find you on social media?
I have three main social media platforms that use:
https://facebook.com/deerosebooks
https://twitter.com/books_dee
https://instagram.com/dee_rosebooks
Published Date: October 02, 2021
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