So around a month ago, I asked you all about your various careers, within and apart from creativity. Today, I want to explore how art and career can influence one another.

Personally, I have a background in counterterrorism. Following Middle East and security studies at UC Berkeley, this passion for safety and tendency toward paranoia combined with the tech territory of the California Bay Area into a career in cyber security. Having family in Israel, the concept of political strife is no stranger, and I have embraced that drive toward security in my writing as well as at the office.

Apex Five, the first in a planned science fiction series, holds international security, colonization and terrorism as central themes. As I write the second installment to “The Plane” series and have recently completed the Certified Ethical Hacker certification, I am proud to acknowledge to living and breathing security.

Now, I want to hear about how your professional experiences both in and out of the artistic world have shaped your creative projects! Which former or current career tracks have triggered passions reflected in your art?