Interview with debut sci fi novelist S.L. Dunn

Today’s spotlight shines on debut sci-fi novelist S.L. Dunn. He’s doing a virtual book tour with Goddess Fish Promotions for Anthem’s Fall.

During the tour, S.L. will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble gift card to a randomly drawn winner. To be entered for a chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit other stops along S.L.’s tour and enter there, too!

Bio:

S.L. Dunn is the debut author of Anthem’s Fall, a novel he wrote amid the wanderings of his mid twenties. He has written while living intermittently in St. John USVI, Boston, Maine and Seattle. Raised on big screen superheroes and pop science fiction, he sought to create a novel that bridged a near-sci-fi thriller with a grand new fantasy. He currently resides in Seattle with his girlfriend Liz and their dog Lucy, and is hard at work completing the next book of the Anthem’s Fall series.

Welcome, S.L. Please tell us about your current release.

I am excited to be releasing my debut novel, Anthem’s Fall (Prospect Hill Press, July 31, 2014). Anthem’s Fall takes elements from science fiction and fantasy, and reads like a Michael Crichton novel that collides with more of a Marvel/DC superhero kind of thing. It’s one part near-sci-fi technothriller, and one part superhero story.

Above a horrified New York City, genetics and ethics collide as the fallen emperor and a banished exile of the same herculean race ignite into battle over the city’s rooftops. In the streets below, a brilliant young scientist has discovered a technology that can defeat them both, yet might be more terrible than either.

Set both in modern New York City and in the technologically sophisticated yet politically savage world of Anthem,Anthem’s Fall unfurls into a plot where larger than life characters born with the prowess of gods are pitted against the shrewd brilliance of a familiar and unlikely heroine.

What inspired you to write this book?

The characters! I was driving on a highway in Vermont a few years ago, and the three main characters presented themselves to me all at once: the leader, the dreamer, and the genius. Between the three of them erupts a plot which revolves around a dreadful technology. There’s a ton of awesome scenes, and new exciting characters. It was a total blast to write.

Excerpt from Anthem’s Fall:

The sharp knife of apocalypse struck without warning, burying itself into the unsuspecting skies of a sun-swept afternoon.

In the northernmost continent of Anthem, the remote city of Municera abruptly reported massive and inexplicable reports of rioting and hysteria. The limited transmissions that came out of the city were fragmented and unclear. Imperial Army regiments were at once dispatched to restore order to the city of Municera, yet all troops lost radio contact within minutes of their arrival. Powerful reverberations shook through the surrounding lands, reaching miles in every direction. It felt as though the gods themselves were hammering the very world with furious impacts. From a distance, billowing black pillars of smoke could be seen reaching high into the sky above the smoldering city. When the smoke and cloud of ash dispersed in the northern winds, the glimmering skyscrapers that had long been an icon of the elegant Municera had vanished from the skyline. Their steel and glass splendor was replaced with a blanket of alarming ruin. By midafternoon, the once prominent city was nothing more than wreckage against the horizon.

Most disturbing were the spreading rumors that a number of Imperial First Class soldiers had flown into the chaos of Municera and had yet to return.

The migration out of the region—an anticipated exodus for which the Imperial Council had quickly prepared—never arrived, and as a disquieting sun set on the remaining cities of the Epsilon empire, the truth became increasingly clear. There were no survivors.

Municera had been home to seven million Primus.

What exciting story are you working on next?

I’m working on the sequel to Anthem’s Fall! I’m hoping to release it last this fall or in the early winter.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I write in bursts. I’ll sit staring at a blank computer screen for four hours, and then at hour four a thousand worlds will spill out of me in twenty minutes. It’s frustrating in a way, but it seems like a process that I don’t have much control over. The words either flow or they don’t.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wasn’t the type of person to be dead-set on any individual vocational path, as my mind was always far too scattered for such specificity. That being said, a list of random things I once aspired to be includes: horticulturalist, Japanese koi garden guru, Iron Chef, woodworker, microbrewer, meteorologist, arborist, shipwright, sommelier, video game tester, biologist, World of Warcraft freelance arena strategist, etc etc. That particular list could go on for pages…

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?

I give away a ton of free paperback and e-book copies of Anthem’s Fall from my website, so don’t be a stranger and sign up for my newsletter! I’m releasing some fun and unrelated shorter works over the next month or so, which will be cool to check out. I’ll also be talking a lot about my writing process on social media as I plug away through book two and connect with new readers. Reach out if you want to talk, I’d love to chat!

Links: 

Website 

Thanks, S.L. Happy writing!

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