Richard Paul Evans' new hero is 'something special'

Sometimes, says author Richard Paul Evans, the story chooses you. Sometimes, something that you really had no intention of writing pops up in your mind and won't let go until you write it down.

That's how it was for his new series of young adult books about a boy named Michael Vey.

Evans is currently working on the third installment of "The Walk," a series about a man who lost everything and is walking across the country. He's still writing books that come out each year around Christmas. So, his two-books-a year regimen is keeping him plenty busy. "I wasn't really looking for anything else," he says.

But a while back, Evans was out for a walk on his southern Utah ranch, "and this idea just came to me."

He started writing, and "I've never had inspiration come so fast. There were days when I'd write 6,000 words a day. It felt like I was downloading more than writing."

The first book in the series, which will be released Aug. 9, is called "Michael Vey: Prisoner of Cell 25" (Mercury Inc., an imprint of Simon & Schuster, $17.99). It tells the story of a boy who is kind of shy, kind of socially inept, gets bullied at school and made fun of because he has Tourette syndrome, but also has a magical electrical power.

He comes in contact with other kids with a variety of powers, in particular a cute cheerleader named Taylor, and is befriended by a man named Hatch, who runs the Elgen Academy.

And while everything seems good on the surface, there are disturbing undercurrents that lead Michael and Taylor into a fight for their lives — and the lives of many others.

It will be a seven-book series, which is "a long arc," says Evans, so there will be lots of adventures, lots of growth and development, lots of intrigue. Even he is not sure exactly where it will take readers, but he promises it will be a fun ride.

"All you need to know at this point is that Hatch is a liar."

The idea of an "electric" hero intrigues him. "After all, we are all bioelectric. In Michael's case, it goes awry. He has more than he should." Of course, "electricity is a metaphor for how Michael discovers his inner talents and powers. Everyone has some inner power that awaits discovery."

There is actually a lot of Christian archetypes in the book, says Evans. And good moral values, although they don't hit you over the head.