SPSFC 3 Author Interview- James Flanagan

1.       What inspired the world, characters, or core concepts of your story? Was it a particular event, piece of media, or a speculative scientific idea?

The inspiration for the world in GENEFIRE comes from here and now. The story of Larry Milton is set in about 2050, and even though that is a few years into the future, it really isn’t very different to today's world with just a few minor tweaks. There is a new fad social media called Buzzworld, electricity is very expensive, student accommodation is rather sparse, and serious journalists now have to operate anonymously. I didn't want that world to feel too different. When we launch into Tammy's story we are now 100 years after that, and we spend all of our time on the International Space Station, which is just much bigger than what we know today.

The core concept of GENEFIRE is that we can write in DNA. I have always found it fascinating the idea of writing in DNA, and how much could we actually write with the 20-letter protein code (and the DNA code that underlies that). Could we write a whole novel? As with most sci-fi stories, for me, it starts with that "What if". What if we could write in DNA? Well, we can. What if we could package that in a virus and infect someone with a message? Sure, we can probably already do that with todays technology. But what if we could send those viruses back in time and change history? Now, that we can't yet do... So that was the thought process behind the concept. 

1.       How did you approach the creation of your main characters? Were they modeled after real-life figures, or did they evolve organically as you explored the world of your story?

The inspiration for the character particularly Larry Milton, comes from my own experience of going through a PhD and also witnessing the journeys of all the PhD students that I have now supervised. I have seen the whole gamut of experiences through a PhD and I know how hard it is. Milton's story is a bit of a metaphor for that PhD journey, from the struggle to find results worthy of a PhD, to finding something you believe is remarkable, and going through hell trying to replicate that result. Then at the end being interrogated as though it was a criminal trial.

Tammy is a character that evolved quite a bit in the writing. At first when I sat down to write, I imagined he was going to be the Dr Watson telling the story of Sherlock, reporting on the story of Gessica, who is the genius genetics expert that drives a lot of that plot. But in the writing, it turned out this was his story to tell, and he grew in the telling.

2.       Science fiction often delves into questions of ethics, technology, and humanity. What central theme or moral question does your story grapple with, and why did you feel it was essential to explore?

I guess the central idea in this novel is about the ethics of genetic engineering. We live in a world now where the technology for genetic engineering is outpacing the societal discussion on the ethics of doing so. Is it ok to publish your own DNA, when you are doing that on behalf of your family who share your DNA, without their consent, or the consent of your children who might not even be born yet. Is it ok to consent to genetic engineering, when you are consenting on behalf of all your descendants. It is an important question that we need to discuss as a society. In GENEFIRE, I don’t really answer that question, but it dangles above the plot, which is more about the cautionary tale of "What if it all goes wrong."

No matter how careful you might be there are always unintended consequences that you didn’t foresee.

3.       How did you approach the integration of futuristic technology or scientific concepts in your story? Did you base them on existing theories or let your imagination run wild?

As I have written in the Authors Note at the end, I have tried to keep some of the science in the book as close to reality as possible. Writing in DNA is already happening, the genetic sleuthing skills displayed by Noah are all real. Then there are some futuristic technologies, like sequencing DNA using imaging of native DNA synthesis, which is theoretically possible, but not with the imaging technology we have today. When it comes to time travel, I have tried to use a format for time travel that was different to what most people have seen in sci-fi and that is where my imagination ran wild.

4.       The sci-fi genre provides a canvas to depict diverse cultures, species, and worlds. How have you incorporated representation and diversity in your work, and why do you think it's vital for the future of science fiction?

It is an interesting point which I didn’t actively think about while writing but will do in future. I agree it is important to keep that in mind in science fiction about the future. Be the change you want to see in the world, paraphrasing Gandhi's famous quote. There is no better example of that than in Star Trek where Gene Roddenberry led the way on diversity in so many ways. The main female characters for GENEFIRE had to have an Irish background, so I have based some of the characteristics around that. Tammy is a bit different, and he certainly faces some bigotry and prejudice in this story. His response is to stand above it, or at least try. 

5.       Every author has a unique writing process. Can you share a bit about yours? How do you manage world-building, plot progression, and character dynamics in such a complex genre?

You will hear people be called Planners (those who plan everything), Pantsers (those who write by the seats of their pants), or a combo - Plantsers. I would say I lean towards Planner, particularly for the plot. I had a plan for each chapter (what the characters goals were, what the conflict was, where I wanted it to end up, and what is going on with the character at that moment), then I wrote each as though it was a bit of a short story. Then started to piece them all together.

For the character dynamics I kept it simple with Larry mostly interacting with Noah, and Tammy mostly interacting with Gessica. So, focussing on that single relationship with their ups and downs made it a bit easier, even though there are other minor characters that all play their part.

The world-building for me happens organically as I write, so I think the world reveals itself more as I write.

6.       What's next for you after SPSFC? Are there any upcoming projects you can share with us?

I have started writing GENEFIRE 2, which will be called something different by the time I'm finished it. Being a planner, I already have the plots for book 2 and 3 lined up, with a few dangling foreshadowed moments snuck into book 1.

I'm also a real sucker for writing contests, participating in Writing Battle in the fall for their short story contest, there is always another NYCmidnight contest on the horizon, and Globe Soup short story contest coming up. I have a growing catalogue of short stories written that I am trying to publish in different venues. You can check out my website if you want to see more of the short fiction that I have had published.  https://jimiflanwrites.wordpress.com/