Thursday, August 4, 2016

Guest Post by Erica L. Satifka - Stay Crazy.


I like killing things.

Not real things, mind you. In person, I'm a pacifist. But fictional things? I'll happily send wave after wave of troops toward certain death in Civilization, usually in the direction of my spouse Rob's cities.

Writing characters, though, is a little different from clicking a mouse on a unit and pushing them into battle. While there are certainly a lot of lighter moments and clever zingers in Stay Crazy, the central conflict is grim: an alien entity that is attempting to destroy the universe by sucking the life energy out of workers at a big-box store. When the victims are depleted, they commit suicide, bringing the world one step closer to annihilation.

Stay Crazy is also the story of a young woman haunted by her neurological issues. Em, our heroine, is faced with such an improbable situation – a second, helpful paranormal being contacting her via the RFID chips in frozen foods – that she's not sure whether or not she's falling back into illness. Like nearly all people with schizophrenia, Em is not violent, and I worked hard to tell her story respectfully and not buy into false stereotypes. (No "psycho-killers" in this book! Or any of my books, ever!)

Even though the two otherworldly beings in the book manifest mostly as disembodied voices, the self-inflicted human deaths are all too real. And it's all massively triggering for Em, who at the start of the book has just gotten out of a mental hospital. Because of the gravity of the overall situation, I didn't want the deaths in Stay Crazy to be mere cannon fodder, and I thought long and hard about the consequences for the plot. Who was this character in relation to Em? Would their death matter? Was I falling into any of the tropes I hate most as a reader? One important character in particular came in and out of my focus as a person to murder. I almost felt like I had them at the edge of a plank on a pirate ship, hovering between life and death, waiting to be rescued (or not!) by my keyboard strokes.

Ultimately, I won't be the final arbiter of those questions. Readers will. But I'd like to think that I took death seriously in Stay Crazy, the same way that I took Em's mental illness seriously, working hard to ensure I captured the nature of her struggle while still creating a compelling narrative.

As for the character I mentioned above? Did they live or die? I guess you'll just have to wait until August 16th to find out!



Erica L. Satifka is a writer and/or friendly artificial construct, forged in a heady mix of iced coffee and sarcasm. She enjoys rainy days, questioning reality, ignoring her to-do list, and adding to her collection of tattoos. Her short fiction has appeared in Clarkesworld, Shimmer, Lightspeed, and Intergalactic Medicine Show, and her debut novel Stay Crazy will be released in August 2016 by Apex Publications. Originally from Pittsburgh, she now lives in Portland, Oregon with her spouse Rob and an indeterminate number of cats.

Preorder Stay Crazy at Apex Books






10 comments:

John said...

fitflops
fitflops sale
louis vuitton borse
outlet louis vuitton
gucci borse
gucci
longchamp sale
longchamp handbags
jordan uk
jordan shoes
2016108 yanghyimng

chenmeinv0 said...

louboutin outlet
authentic louis vuitton handbags
ray ban wayfarer
louis vuitton
north face jackets
michael kors handbags
ralph lauren
christian louboutin pas cher
cleveland cavaliers jerseys
nhl jerseys cheap
2017.2.11xukaimin

traveling tours said...

iran tours provide all travel facilities such as ticket reservations, accommodation, food, sightseeing, and other travel facilities to serve customers.

Bilibili said...

Red Bottom Shoes
Air Jordan 9
Pandora Outlet
Yeezy boost 350 v2
Air Max 270
Pandora
Jordan 11
Air Jordan
Jordan Retro 11
Pandora Official Site
Rodney20181228

Lord Mark said...

Are you tired of being human, having talented brain turning to a vampire in a good posture in ten minutes, Do you want to have power and influence over others, To be charming and desirable, To have wealth, health, without delaying in a good human posture and becoming an immortal? If yes, these your chance. It's a world of vampire where life get easier,We have made so many persons vampires and have turned them rich, You will assured long life and prosperity, You shall be made to be very sensitive to mental alertness, Stronger and also very fast, You will not be restricted to walking at night only even at the very middle of broad day light you will be made to walk, This is an opportunity to have the human vampire virus to perform in a good posture. If you are interested contact us on Vampirelord7878@gmail.com

upmusic said...

دانلود آهنگ جدید
دانلود آهنگ سینا پارسیان شکاف
شهاب تیام دوستت دارم

jessedavis said...

Ceo (Ray Ban New Wayfarer Polarized) bob Sacco has an image, Also so that you (Yeezy Boost 350 Cheap) can scope (Ray Ban Outlet) Adelante homemade creation and ground-breaking hit even though latina our great country. By permitting patrons a customized color, Age in addition to the fullness within (Michael Kors Outlet Store) as (Michael Kors Outlet Online) well as, Adelante is in fact a new trustworthy following having to do with people that really care for shoes or boots and (Coach Outlet Online) likewise individuals with feet (Jordan Shoes For Sale Online) that are difficult to buy. On (Coach Outlet Clearance Sale) top of that, By paying of the builders double (Michael Kors Outlet) market quote, Sacco is considered giving a age group coming from all cobblers with their own families transfer to the 21st Century with an increase of

Anonymous said...

Ray Ban Prescription Sunglasses to engage Real Yeezy Shoes in proactive behavior that elevates their senses of competence over time.

We study both the rare gas hydride anions, RG "H' (RG = He "Rn) and Group 2 (Group IIa) metal hydride anions, MIIaH' (MIIa = Be "Ra), Air Jordan 1 Sale calculating potential energy curves at the CCSD(T) level with Jordan Shoes For Sale Cheap augmented quadruple and quintuple basis sets, and extrapolating the results to the Michael Kors Bags Sale basis Coach Outlet Store Online set limit. We report spectroscopic parameters obtained from these curves; additionally, we study the Be "He complex. While New Black Yeezys the RG "H' and Be "He species are weakly bound, we show that, as with the previously studied BeH' and MgH' species, the other MIIaH' species are strongly bound, despite the interactions nominally also being between 2020 Jordan Release Dates two closed shell species: M(ns2) and '(1s2).

Milbert Blogs said...

Check out our website for more information about spray foaming.

joao said...

that was an amazing post

Carta de Conducao


Rijbewijs Kopen


Buy driving license


Comprar Licencia de Conducir

Permis de Conduire

Post a Comment

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...