Q&A with Bill Gourgey discussion

I'll do my best to answer your questions!

In your book you don't shy away from describing technology and the science behind it in great detail. This is something that is usually pointed as a characteristic of hard science fiction like Arthur C.Clarke's fiction. Was there a conscious effort to be part of that genre in your choice ("let's write some hard science fiction!"), or was that a consequence of something else, and if so, what was it?

It was a little bit of both. My professional roots are in technology, and ever since I was a kid I loved math and science, so it seemed natural to write about things that have been with me for so long. In that sense, diving into technology was a consequence of who I am ("you write what you are.") As a sci fi reader, I love the far out fantasies, but I find myself most intrigued by those novels that seem plausible (Crichton, Gibson, Stephenson), so I decided to try to uncover a smattering of what has been going on in the world's laboratories and spin them into my tale. In that sense, it was a conscious effort. I would also add that whether or not humans would admit it, our first and longest lasting love is with our technologies--not our deities or cultural artifacts--but the tools we use and the things we invent with them. After all, it is technology (beginning with flint-knapping) that sets us apart from our companions on this little blue globe in the cosmos.

That is a very interesting reply.
Personally as a linguist I would say that in my opinion it was before that our incredibly social nature that made the difference, which led to us developing enormous centers in our brains dedicated to communication, which led to language, which led to abstraction, which led to technology. But I absolutely see your point and I guess it's just a matter of our formation dictating our point of view.

I have one more question if you don't mind. I guess it's not a big spoiler if I infer that Glide is about time travelling. So in the book, time travel is presented as a byproduct, or if you will, a natural consequence of the technology that gave birth to the gliding machines.
But where did you start from in your mind? From the time-travel, or from the anti-grav technology? In other words, both are very important plot points, but from which of the two did you start your story seed?

You probably know that Tolkien was a linguist and that the Lord of the Rings began with his desire to invent a new language--Sylvan, the language of the elves. From there, the rich mythology of Middle Earth grew, and from there, the tale. And I do agree that the combination of communication and technology were the spark (Prometheus' Fire) that set us apart. But being a technology guy, I defer to the tools and tech aspect.

As for Glide, I started with the graviton--or, really, the lack of the graviton. In truth, it's been a missing link in the grand unified theory that the graviton has never been detected, so it was an obvious mystery to exploit. The other mystery in our physics is Time. There are no good field theories that explain time as its own entity (at least for a lay technology guy like me). It's no surprise, then, that we mortals are all intrigued by the concept of immortality. What would it be like to be immortal? What does immortality look like, feel like? Would it be a blessing, a curse, or both? Put gravitons and immortality in a beaker and shake them up and you get Glide, The Prophet's Revenge!

Thanks so much for your insightful questions and don't hesitate to keep the dialogue flowing!