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Please join me in welcoming Anderson O'Donnell, author of the dystopian novel, Kingdom, to A Night's Dream of Books! Thank you for joining us, Anderson!
Now on to the interview!
Maria: What's your background as a writer?
Anderson: I always considered myself to be a reader first; the writing was just an attempt to mimic my heroes -- the paperback writers whose work I grew up worshipping. But during my undergrad years, I came to appreciate the extent to which writing had become a critical part of my own life. I hit a point when scribbling in the notebook wasn't just a hobby. It was essential, like breathing or eating or sleeping. After that discovery, there wasn't much else I could do but write. But I still needed the discipline, and I'd say that's the area in which I worked the hardest. I studied other writers' styles, sure. But most importantly, I studied how they approached their craft, and mimicked these techniques until I finally hit my own stride.
Maria: Fascinating! I think this process is part of every serious writer's development as a professional, as well as an artist. Which writers have been your major literary influences?
Anderson: William Gibson, Bret Easton Ellis, Jack O'Connell, Stephen King, Neal Stephenson, Bruce Sterling, and Shakespeare.
Maria: Very interesting and eclectic list! How have philosophical/religious views on the nature of the soul impacted this novel?
Anderson: I tried to use some classic philosophical/religious texts' take on the human soul to serve as Kingdom's intellectual foundation. For instance, the works of both Aquinas and Plato were essential in how I approached the soul. But I didn't want to preach, so I tried to keep the philosophical diatribes to an absolute minimum. It was my goal to use certain philosophical ideas about the soul as a starting point, and then have the characters in Kingdom put their own spin on these classic takes.
