‘The Road,’ ‘Handmaiden,’ Pulse and the dystopian novelist’s job

An interview about my latest novel The Murder Plague has been released on the podcast “Florida Book Club,” exploring that book and probing the responsibilities of the dystopian novelist.

This incredible piece, hosted by Christopher Nank, features Nank and I going deep on the aspects of dystopian literature, on what distinguishes necessary literary violence from gratuitous violence, and how I, as the author, am affected and directed by the horrors of the Pulse nightclub massacre and the enduring trauma of the COVID-19 epidemic.

Clearly, those two events are important to The Murder Plague, which is about a viral pandemic of violence, based in Orlando, Florida. Chris’s questions were tough, challenging, as they needed to be. The best thinking always comes from the hardest inquiries.

In the 27-minute interview, conducted by phone in May, continues The Florida Book Club‘s valiant effort to highlight Florida-based stories and books by Florida-based writers.

It’s been a great month so far for The Murder Plague! Earlier, the Florida Authors and Publishers Association announced the book is the winner of one of FAPA’s annual literary awards, in the category of thrillers and suspense novels. Whether it brings home bronze, silver, or gold, we’ll find out at the awards ceremony in August. Stay tuned!

In the Florida Book Club podcast, Nank and I discuss some of the main characters and their motivations and weaknesses; the meanings of violence; the themes of survival, resilience, fear, and courage; and a little of the story’s plot, though I don’t think we get into it enough to require any spoiler alerts.

We also have excellent discussions of some of the varied yet notable works of dystopian literature and movies, touching on 1984, A Clockwork Orange, Children of Men, A Handmaid’s Tale, The Road, Mad Max, and A Boy and His Dog, how each of them might be considered dystopian though they are so different, and so what that says about there being a dystopian spectrum. And where might The Murder Plague fall on that spectrum, and what are its closest parallels?

If you’re wondering whether The Murder Plague might be more than just a shoot-’em-up thriller, I urge you to give this podcast a listen. Then, of course, you’ll want to read it for yourself.