The idea for Torch came to me in the early summer of 2020. Originally, it was about two siblings who found a mysterious object in their deceased parents' and they are transported into a different world. Over time, the idea morphed quite a bit, and by the beginning of August, the story was about a teenager who was destined to help the kingdom restore the Northern Lights to the sky, which had been stolen by an evil sorcerer. 

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I was trying to come up with a name for the teen, and I turned to SonsofVikings.com for inspiration. "Sam Sterling" was the placeholder at the time. Ready to give up, I looked through ancient runes to see what the symbol for "C" was and what it meant. In the Elder Futhark alphabet, the ancient symbol for "C," Kaun, meant torch, fire, mallady, and death. That day, Sam Sterling became Torch Starling, and the name of the show became Torch.

 

By January 1, 2021, I had written the first song, an early version of "Someday Soon." That would be the only song I wrote for a few years, and I slowly chipped away at the story and the book. 

 

In May of 2023, I revisited and rewrote "Someday Soon" and began writing more songs. The first draft of Torch was completed on July 4, 2024.