Interview With Sci-Fi Thriller Author Janet Stilson

 

 

1.      What inspired you to write this book?  

There were a couple of major inspirations. One relates to my “other life.” In addition to writing fiction, I’m a journalist who has chronicled the media industry for many years. It’s allowed me to chat with a lot of executives who work behind the scenes, planning new programming, technology, and ways of attracting revenue. A lot of what I’ve discussed with them had to do with the future. And that got me thinking about what big media companies might be like a few decades from now and how they might influence our thoughts and actions even more than they already do. 

The second inspiration relates to something that has happened to me now and again, and which drives me nuts: important email messages that are automatically routed to my spam folder. And because I (admittedly) fail to check the spam folder as often as I should, it sometimes takes me a while to discover them. 

Trying to find some kind of humor in the situation, I imagined a place in the upper stratosphere where missing messages are trapped. That became a creative “seed” for this novel. The name of the book, Universe of Lost Messages, refers to a metaverse that looks like a vast cosmos, but it’s filled with bubble-like spheres (rather than planets and stars). Each one contains holograms of people delivering messages. They are all in limbo, unable to reach the people that were supposed to receive them. A few of them have life-and-death consequences for the novel’s characters. And on a larger scale, the missing messages could impact people across the entire world. 

2.      What exactly is it about and who is it written for?  

Universe is a sci-fi thriller, so it’s for anyone who gravitates stories of that sort, and hopefully anyone who loves literary fiction as well. I’ve sprinkled in some romance, humor, and mystery for good measure. 

The novel is about an eclectic assortment of people—from a reckless megastar celebrity to a down-on-his-luck maintenance guy. Some characters aren’t normal humans. They have levels of charisma that go way off the spectrum of what regular people exude. As such, they’re known as Charismites. Their powers of charm are so great that they can get anyone to do almost anything. So they can be very dangerous, if they use their powers in the wrong way. 

Two 17-year-old Charismites, Izzie and Tristan, are abducted by a mysterious organization who want to force them to deliver information out into the world that is completely false. This disinformation will give the abductors a massive amount of power. 

The people who love the Charismites will do anything to find them before they can be used to warp the minds of humans all over the world. 

3.      What do you hope readers will get out of reading your book?  

I really hope they find it entertaining. But it would be an added bonus if the book sparks some thoughts about how media could evolve in the future. 

4.      How did you decide on your book’s title and cover design?  

There didn’t seem to be another title that would work as well as Universe of Lost Messages, because that metaverse is so critical to saving Izzie and Tristan—along with a few other people who were abducted. 

My publisher and I batted around some cover designs, and we hit on the one we’re using as the best reflection of what the book is about. It features one of the main characters, Cheeta Lucida LaVera, who’s a street-tough teen who travels around the Universe in search of crucial messages. 

5.      What advice or words of wisdom do you have for fellow writers – other than run!?  

LOL! I could go on and on, in answering that question. I’ll give you just a few thoughts. 

First, find your tribe. By that I mean identify other writers who can offer support, and that you can help, too. Maybe you give each other feedback on drafts, or a shoulder to sob on during moments of despair; or an occasional piece of advice. Mentors who are much further up the food chain than you are fantastic, but most don’t have a lot of time. So don’t discount writers who are at the same professional level as yourself, or better.  

Also, understand that rejection is part of the gig. It doesn’t go away when you reach a certain level of success, although it probably will come a lot less frequently. When your work is rejected, pay attention to why that might be. Sometimes rejection notices offer some clues, or maybe you need to vet your story with trusted colleagues before sending it out again. Learn from the feedback, develop a thick skin, and move on. 

Finally, focus! It’s so easy to become distracted by emails or social media—they can seem like an escape hatch the second you reach a stumbling block and you don’t know what to write next. Limit the distractions as best you can while you’re in creative mode. Meditation helps me enormously with that—and sometimes it helps me reach higher levels of inspiration. 

6.      What trends in the book world do you see -- and where do you think the book publishing industry is heading?   

Oh gosh. I’m not sure I can answer that with a great deal of authority. But from my limited vantage point, it’s extremely competitive. I see no signs of that changing. At the same time, while there are so many ways to entertain ourselves in this world, a huge community of people still love reading books. I suspect that as time goes by, audio books will become even more popular. 

7.      Were there experiences in your personal life or career that came in handy when writing this book?   

Yes. My whole experience as a journalist reporting on the media industry, as I mentioned. In addition, I’ve set most of the book in two places that I know and love: New York City and Upstate New York. Plus, I know some very charming people! 

8.      How would you describe your writing style? Which writers or books is your writing similar to?  

A couple of people who have read Universe liken the style to that of Phillip K. Dick. Two other books, The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin and Europe in Autumn by David Hutchison, have also been mentioned. 

9.      What challenges did you overcome in the writing of this book?  

In the early stages, I struggled to find the proper amount of time to really focus. As part of that, I was adjusting to the death of my husband, who was a huge supporter of my work. 

10.  If people can buy or read one book this week or month, why should it be yours? 

If readers are looking for a thriller that peers into the future—and which also contains a slow-burn romance, humor, and a mix of wildly different characters trying to solve a huge mystery—then Universe is probably a very good fit. 

About The Author: Janet Stilson writes scripts, novels and short stories that largely fall in the sci-fi and fantasy genres and illuminate the human condition in provocative ways.  Her work has been selected to be part of the Writers’ Lab for Women, which is funded by Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman. And it’s also been published by the esteemed sci-fi literary magazine Asimov’s. As a journalist, Janet got her “chops” at the storied showbiz bible Variety. She has traveled the world, chronicling the business of media. Learn more on janetstilson.com

 

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Brian Feinblum should be followed on www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum. This is copyrighted by BookMarketingBuzzBlog ©2024. Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog. His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent.  This award-winning blog has generated over 3.9 million pageviews. With 4,900+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.” For the past three decades, including 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and director of publicity positions at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler. He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.