This post appeared a few years back. I'm running it again as I share the September sale of books two and three. Here are the links -- just click on the titles.
Transfusion (book 3)
After reading about transhumanism for a couple of years,
I plotted the journey of Chase Sterling, the world’s first transhuman. His
story begins with my first published novel, Wake
the Dead, followed by book two, Killswitch. The trilogy ends with Transfusion. I said goodbye to Chase, figuring I got the wired-up superhuman to
a reasonably happy ending. It wasn’t easy—his life was a mess.
I wasn’t frightened by the very real potential of H+ (transhumanism) when I studied it, or when I turned my reluctant hero into a transhuman. But Chase was frightened. Readers are alarmed—even more so when they find out I didn’t entirely make this stuff up. I wrote an article, “Top Ten Things Christians Should Know About Transhumanism.” I said I wrote it to warn people, but the truth is I don’t believe there’s any reason to fear the technology. I don’t fret over ending up like Chase. Still, it’s something to consider. This movement, like many others past and present, is rooted in mankind’s quest for eternal life, for becoming god-like.
Readers disturbed by the transhuman agenda have not been
outnumbered by those remarking they find my future-fiction government just as
troubling. In the story, the U.S.A. is no more. The reason for the drastic
overhaul was the crumbling Constitution, and the perceived obligation of elite
rulers to protect common citizens and supply their every need. The result? Zero
unemployment. Free healthcare. Free housing and education. Of course, there’s a
catch. And a rebellion.
People ask me if I think our nation will turn into that nation. After all, I did my
homework on H+. Did I research the possibility of a government reboot? Is it
going to happen? Is it already happening? Questions loom concerning the
progression, if you can call it that, of our government. For me, it’s easier to
grasp the potential of H+ than to predict the success or failure of America.
Even so, living under a totalitarian government doesn’t
worry me. When readers tell me I wrote a scary book, I almost shake my head. “I
don’t think so,” I want to say. But of course, if they say it’s scary, then
it’s scary. I’ll go with it. But I’m not scared.
I can do little to change the direction of either science or politics. All I can do is tell a good story. So, I wrote a transhuman odyssey. It’s a hard road for my hero, but fear doesn’t conquer him. Hope wins.
