I’d like to thank everyone here at Fresh Fiction for inviting me to join them today to help celebrate the release of my fifth Paladin book, Darkness Unknown, from Pocket Star! Like most authors, every book I write is special to me in some way, but this particular one is more so than most.   For me, some stories are harder to bring into focus than others.   I usually see the opening scenes of a new book pretty clearly,  and I know where the story needs to end up.   The middle of the book, though, is often lost in fog, with my clear sight limited only as far as the next page I’m about to write.  But from the moment I first “met” Jarvis Donahue in the second Paladin book, it was as if I’d known him for years.   By the time he’d spoken no more than a handful of words, I knew that he liked classic rock, drove a muscle car he’d restored himself, and would do anything for those who mattered to him.   I truly felt like his presence in the world of the Paladins was an extra special gift from my muse. When it came time to give…