SciFiNow - 06.2020

Can you tell us more about The

Human Son?

The Human Son is set 500 years in the

future. Earth has been brought back from

the brink of devastating climate change by

a group of genetically-engineered hyper-

intelligent beings called the Erta. They

have rebalanced the atmosphere, regrown

the forests, dredged the seas of plastic and

nurtured endangered species back into

abundance. Unfortunately, in order to do

this, they had to enforce the gentle extinction

of their creators. So, humans no longer exist.

Having fulfilled their purpose, the Erta

face the decision of whether to resurrect

humans and risk undoing all their hard work

or leave them dead and buried. To help them

decide, a quiet and clinical atmospheric

scientist named Ima volunteers to raise a

single human child as her own, documenting

its progress as it grows. The story is part

thought experiment, part parental diary, and

part love letter to the human race.

What inspired you with the character

of Ima?

Ima is based a little bit on my wife, who is a

climate scientist but nowhere near as cold or

clinical. Ima’s love of solitude and distance

from the world is something I share, and her

journey of awakening as she raises the child

will be familiar to all parents.

The ideas of motherhood and

humanity are prevalent themes, why

were these ideas important to you?

I am both a human and a parent, so I guess

those ideas always bubble up in my writing,

but I’m also interested in why humanity

finds itself in a constant cycle of success and

failure. We achieve incredible things, but

then we mess it all up; we drag ourselves

from the hell of the dark ages into the

prosperity of the industrial era only to find

that in doing so we may have destroyed the

planet; we create clean, transportable water

using a material that wreaks havoc on the

oceans; we shrink supercomputers into the

size of telephones and then use them to take

pictures of ourselves.

I wanted to explore the idea that our

failures might only be down to lack of

guidance. We have no manual. We are

helpless orphans hurtling through an

uncaring void, but perhaps this need not be

078 | W W W.SCI FI N OW.CO.U K

We speak to author Adrian J Walker about his upcoming

dystopian sci-fi, The Human Son WORDS RACHAEL HARPER

PARENTAL

GUIDANCE

so. Maybe we need a guide;

something like the Erta

to help us when we

make decisions.

I’m aware this idea may

not sit well with those who

believe we already have

such a guide in God. The

story also explores this side

of humanity, and I’ve tried

my best not to enforce a

world view with regards to

religion. It’s always better

to ask questions rather than

dictate answers.

There is a hint of

religious fanaticism in

the novel, what made

you take this route?

I wanted to suggest that

the Erta, despite their

superior intelligence, are

still flawed. The fever that grips them as they

embark upon their next phase of existence

is a product of their arrogance and certainty

(traits common to all fanatics) and it is

through witnessing this that Ima begins to

learn the truth about her species.

There is scope for more stories set in

this world, are there plans for sequels

or prequels?

I have no plans to yet, but I loved writing as

Ima and I would like to revisit her world.

The book is written almost as a love

letter from Ima to Reed, why did you

decide to write in the first person?

I prefer ventriloquism to omniscience when

I’m writing, which is why I tend to use the

first person. There are two main reasons why

I wrote as Ima talking to Reed. The first was

that her language changes as Reed grows

older, a device which (hopefully) shows her

growth from the clinical observer we meet

at the beginning. The second is because you

can also read it as Ima talking to you, which

I think creates a more intimate experience.

What were the challenges of writing

from a mother’s point of view instead

of a father’s?

While I can’t claim first-hand experience

of all the mechanics involved in creating

and raising an infant (the snapshots of

breastfeeding, for example, were based on

memories of watching my wife suffer at

the lips of our daughter), I have been lucky

enough to be able to play an extremely close

role in my children’s upbringing. Hopefully

that helped make Ima’s voice authentic.

I also think the roles of mother/father are

becoming fuzzier these days. After ten years,

I think the only difference our kids identify

between us is that mum looks nicer and dad

is more embarrassing!

What authors/novels are you reading

at the moment?

I’ve been sent an advance copy of The Book

Of Koli by M R Carey, which I’m enjoying.

I’ve just finished Wanderers by Chuck

Wendig and Eden by Tim Lebbon, both of

which are brilliant, and I’m looking forward

to reading Goldilocks by Laura Lam.

What’s next for you?

I’ve almost finished the first draft of a book

set partly in Houston, where I once lived. It’s

about a savant, and there’s no dystopia in

sight. I feel like I’m done writing about the

end of the world for a while. I’d like to write

more about intelligence, technology, and

more hopeful futures.

The Human Son by Adrian J Walker

is published by Solaris on 30 April.

BOOK CLUB

Interview

078_SFN_170 Author Interview.indd 78 19/03/2020 15:36

Can you tell us more about The

Human Son?

The Human Son is set 500 years in the

future. Earth has been brought back from

the brink of devastating climate change by

a group of genetically-engineered hyper-

intelligent beings called the Erta. They

have rebalanced the atmosphere, regrown

the forests, dredged the seas of plastic and

nurtured endangered species back into

abundance. Unfortunately, in order to do

this, they had to enforce the gentle extinction

of their creators. So, humans no longer exist.

Having fulfilled their purpose, the Erta

face the decision of whether to resurrect

humans and risk undoing all their hard work

or leave them dead and buried. To help them

decide, a quiet and clinical atmospheric

scientist named Ima volunteers to raise a

single human child as her own, documenting

its progress as it grows. The story is part

thought experiment, part parental diary, and

part love letter to the human race.

What inspired you with the character

of Ima?

Ima is based a little bit on my wife, who is a

climate scientist but nowhere near as cold or

clinical. Ima’s love of solitude and distance

from the world is something I share, and her

journey of awakening as she raises the child

will be familiar to all parents.

The ideas of motherhood and

humanity are prevalent themes, why

were these ideas important to you?

I am both a human and a parent, so I guess

those ideas always bubble up in my writing,

but I’m also interested in why humanity

finds itself in a constant cycle of success and

failure. We achieve incredible things, but

then we mess it all up; we drag ourselves

from the hell of the dark ages into the

prosperity of the industrial era only to find

that in doing so we may have destroyed the

planet; we create clean, transportable water

using a material that wreaks havoc on the

oceans; we shrink supercomputers into the

size of telephones and then use them to take

pictures of ourselves.

I wanted to explore the idea that our

failures might only be down to lack of

guidance. We have no manual. We are

helpless orphans hurtling through an

uncaring void, but perhaps this need not be

078 | W W W. S C I FI N OW.CO.U K

We speak to author Adrian J Walker about his upcoming

dystopian sci-fi, The Human Son WORDS RACHAEL HARPER

PARENTAL

GUIDANCE

so. Maybe we need a guide;

something like the Erta

to help us when we

make decisions.

I’m aware this idea may

not sit well with those who

believe we already have

such a guide in God. The

story also explores this side

of humanity, and I’ve tried

my best not to enforce a

world view with regards to

religion. It’s always better

to ask questions rather than

dictate answers.

There is a hint of

religious fanaticism in

the novel, what made

you take this route?

I wanted to suggest that

the Erta, despite their

superior intelligence, are

still flawed. The fever that grips them as they

embark upon their next phase of existence

is a product of their arrogance and certainty

(traits common to all fanatics) and it is

through witnessing this that Ima begins to

learn the truth about her species.

There is scope for more stories set in

this world, are there plans for sequels

or prequels?

I have no plans to yet, but I loved writing as

Ima and I would like to revisit her world.

The book is written almost as a love

letter from Ima to Reed, why did you

decide to write in the first person?

I prefer ventriloquism to omniscience when

I’m writing, which is why I tend to use the

first person. There are two main reasons why

I wrote as Ima talking to Reed. The first was

that her language changes as Reed grows

older, a device which (hopefully) shows her

growth from the clinical observer we meet

at the beginning. The second is because you

can also read it as Ima talking to you, which

I think creates a more intimate experience.

What were the challenges of writing

from a mother’s point of view instead

of a father’s?

While I can’t claim first-hand experience

of all the mechanics involved in creating

and raising an infant (the snapshots of

breastfeeding, for example, were based on

memories of watching my wife suffer at

the lips of our daughter), I have been lucky

enough to be able to play an extremely close

role in my children’s upbringing. Hopefully

that helped make Ima’s voice authentic.

I also think the roles of mother/father are

becoming fuzzier these days. After ten years,

I think the only difference our kids identify

between us is that mum looks nicer and dad

is more embarrassing!

What authors/novels are you reading

at the moment?

I’ve been sent an advance copy of The Book

Of Koli by M R Carey, which I’m enjoying.

I’ve just finished Wanderers by Chuck

Wendig and Eden by Tim Lebbon, both of

which are brilliant, and I’m looking forward

to reading Goldilocks by Laura Lam.

What’s next for you?

I’ve almost finished the first draft of a book

set partly in Houston, where I once lived. It’s

about a savant, and there’s no dystopia in

sight. I feel like I’m done writing about the

end of the world for a while. I’d like to write

more about intelligence, technology, and

more hopeful futures.

The Human Son by Adrian J Walker

is published by Solaris on 30 April.

BOOK CLUB

Interview