Goodreads asked Dale Amidei:

Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

Dale Amidei "Operation Naji" was inspired by a snippet of dialogue in my debut novel, "The Anvil of the Craftsman."

The boy nodded. “My father—he was a secret soldier as
well?”
“He was a friend.” Kameldorn drove back up the
embankment.
“He must have been a warrior with you.”
“He was a finder of paths, much as you are. Your father
gave his life to save the lives of others, men he did not really
even know, and he did it with great bravery. Your father was a
strong man, Gabir, but more importantly he was a good man.
His family should remember that most of all.”
“We remember. I was only a child, but I remember. We
will not forget.”
“That is as it should be. Show me the way to where I need
to go, as he did.”
Solemnly nodding, Gabir pointed to a trail that snaked off
across the desert from the established road. “Begin there.
Watch for the rocks.”
They set off cross-country on a route only a boy like Gabir
would know. Kameldorn spent the time thinking about a man
he had been missing since 1994.

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