Hello! This edition of Lit Visions is a podcast with author
- it was recorded last year but the insights couldn’t be more relevant.Before we dive in, here are some recent posts you might enjoy:
Elon Should Read 1930s Chinese Sci-Fi - to get us to Mars (narratively)
Procrastination, Dostoevsky and Infinite Novel Theory | Jordan Castro
As ever, do share Lit Visions with anyone who’s intrigued by fiction, reality and the liminal space in between:
Now onto the podcast.
Today, I speak with someone whom I discovered through my previous guest, James Yu, the co-founder of Sudowrite. Back in May, James tweeted about a new novel called Reap3r, which he described as "cerebral near future sci-fi grounded in reality". I was pretty intrigued so I bought the book and messaged the author, Eliot Peper - who was kind enough to reply and be present for this podcast.
Eliot is based in Oakland, California and is the author of ten novels! His works have received amazing reviews from people and organisations like Seth Godin, The New York Times Book Review and Popular Science.
And his latest book, Reap3r has again captured imaginations around the world. The story follows a quantum computer scientist, virologist, podcaster, venture capitalist, and assassin - who all collide and change the course of future history. It's a gripping adventure that weaves a number of complex themes in wonderful tapestry - themes like ambition, secrecy, transgression, the price of progress and how technology shapes our lives and world.
Now in our conversation, Eliot shares his inspiration for Reap3r but we mainly discuss other topics such as:
How speculative fiction can be a tool for social change
The future's relationship with the present
What are the best ways to sell novels
And the role of place in storytelling, looking specifically at his home city, Oakland, in California
We also reflect on Eliot's creative influences like William Gibson and towards the end, we even speculate on the future of fiction.
This is a long conversation but I highly recommend listening to it in full. Eliot has a fascinating perspective - on almost everything - and it's a pleasure to see him think. I hope you enjoy it.
Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and YouTube.
Where you can find us:
Eliot on Twitter: twitter.com/eliotpeper
Dhru on Twitter: twitter.com/dhrupadkarwa
Mentioned in the episode:
Reap3r by Eliot Peper
Lit Visions - for essays, podcasts, speculative fiction and novel suggestions
The Golden Gate by Vikram Seth
1984 by George Orwell
Star Wars (Original Trilogy)
The Martian by Andy Weir
Pattern Recognition by William Gibson
Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler
Show notes:
0:00 - Introduction
02:30 - What fiction means to Eliot
05:48 - On being a reader first, a writer second
10:37 - Parallels between writing and startups
15:50 - Idea of 'Bias to Action'
17:40 - Thinking of novels as products
20:00 - Selling novels by word-of-mouth growth
28:10 - How people value fiction today
35:50 - Nuances between fiction and non-fiction
39:00 - Gifting books to friends
40:15 - Inspiration for Reap3r
46:50 - Role of place in storytelling
56:50 - What is speculative fiction?
01:01:27 - Being present vs Living in the future
01:04:53 - Prediction in near-future sci-fi
01:06:40 - "Science fiction isn't serious literature"
01:09:00 - On utopias and dystopias
01:13:50 - Fiction as a tool for social change
01:18:54 - The power of metaphors
01:20:14 - Speculating on the future of fiction
01:28:00 - 'Pattern Recognition' by William Gibson
The Magic of Speculative Fiction | Eliot Peper