People occasionally ask me why I write
dystopian fiction. I like writing dystopian because it is a release of all of
the crazy things running through my mind. Dystopian allows you to explore questions like…What if the government became a dictatorship? What if people
weren’t allowed to go to school? What if teenagers could save the world because
their parents have lost hope? What if?
I admit I have an overactive
imagination. (I’ve seen every episode of The Walking Dead, and even though I
know zombies aren’t real, I still check my closets and look under the bed for
zombies after each and every episode). Anyhow, I think my parents had a lot to
do with how I write today. One of their favorite dinner table conversations
growing up was deciding which of their children, (there are three of us),
they’d pick to be stranded on the infamous deserted island with, if they had to
be stuck there with only one. They usually chose my sister because of her
internal GPS system and leadership skills. They often decided on my brother
because he has MacGyver-like qualities, and they were sure he could build a hut
out of sand or something. And they never chose me. Though they often laughed
and said they’d take me if they were interested in being entertained.
Another usual at our dinner table was
Dad asking if the “bad guys” were to enter our house at that exact moment, what
item in the room around us could be turned into a weapon. My siblings were very
talented at this. Surprise, surprise. Me, not so much. I usually panicked. (I’d
think of a hiding place so they could do the fighting).
Another family favorite? Dad’s strategy
talks about how when you enter a room, you should look around immediately,
assessing the situation and room for possible exits, windows included, were any
emergency to occur.
I think my parents came by it honestly.
My mom’s dad was a WWII vet who fought in the Battle of the Bulge. He’d rush
his family to the basement when it thunder stormed, never having recovered from
the war or the memories of bombs and explosions. My dad’s parents took us on a
family vacation to the Caribbean every year, and they’d try to split up flights
between my aunt and my dad’s side, just in case there was a crash. They wanted
some of the family to survive to take care of the family business. That always
freaked me out. I’d worry the entire flight. (About not only crashing, but
trying to figure out what was wrong with my family). J
My family always had movie night
growing up. Every Sunday. We would either go see one at the theater or rent one
and watch it in our basement. The genre of choice was always action, usually a
thriller. I remember watching scenes where someone would go outside to
investigate the “strange noise” in the night, and my family would be yelling at
the screen. (If we were home. They were well behaved in theaters. Mostly).
They’d yell for the character to go back inside. Of course, the character never
would. My brother would always be the first to point out the girl character who
was going to get killed by not reacting rationally.
He’d yell at the screen as she tried to start her car but couldn’t even get the
keys into the ignition because her hands couldn’t stop shaking from fear.
I was sitting in my driveway last week,
trying to start my car. I couldn’t get the key in properly, and I started to
panic. The more I panicked, the more my fingers fumbled and I couldn’t get my
key in. I could hear my brother’s voice in my head saying, “Hurry up, Sarah.
You’re gonna die. The bad guys are going to get you. Start the car!” After a
moment, I started laughing at myself. Eventually, I pulled it together and
managed to insert the key properly to start the car.
Anyhow…Why do I write dystopian? I
think you get the point. I guess never getting chosen for Survival Island,
never quite figuring out what to make a weapon out of, and just those what if
conversations in general really stayed with me. I promise you right now, that
if you were to go to either one of my parents’ houses or my siblings’, you’d
find emergency supplies in their basements complete with water, food, and back
up power supplies in case of an emergency. I barely have my fridge stocked
right now by the way. My plan is to head to one of their houses when the world
ends. I just hope I make it there in time…I guess it makes sense that I never
was picked for that island.
I smile affectionately when I think of
my childhood and when I think of my family. True, they may have scarred this
introvert for life, ha, ha, ha, but they have to be credited for inspiring me
to write some of the dystopian stories I write today. Thanks so much for
stopping by the blog tour. If you’d like to risk getting inside of this head a
little bit, all four books are on sale right now for only $1.99 each on Kindle.
If you read any of the books, I’d be flattered if you left a review and connected
with my page on Facebook, where I’ll keep you updated on future books. You just
never know what this dystopian writer will come up with next. J ~Sara
for more info on Sarah and her books:
Official Website: SarahElleEmm.com
Official Blog: SarahsViewfromtheBottom.com
Twitter: @SarahElleEmm
Sarah's Facebook pages: 'Sarah Elle Emm' and 'Harmony Run Series'
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