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Written by Lauren Smith
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Friday, 02 November 2007 |
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The Virtual Book Review Network brings you... An Interview with David Dent, author of Alex Webster and the Gods  David Dent VBRN: What inspired you to create a work of science fiction? David Dent: Science fiction and fantasy have always been obsessed with the nature of godhood. The idea came to me in 2002 after reading an article in the Atlantic Monthly on the explosion of new religious movements. The article noted that there were about 10,000 religions competing for our souls and that some sociologists use the idea of a religious economy or spiritual marketplace to explain what helps a religion succeed in gaining followers. One could say that Darwinism had its start in the heavens. Because the capitalist marketplace is the dominant metaphor, if not mythology, of our age, I thought it would be interesting to examine a world where gods are the producers of religious services, competing to meet the demands of humans. VBRN: How did you arrive at the idea of Yahweh as the first capitalist? David Dent: About the same time that I was considering ideas for my book, I was also taking a course in world religions. During one class the professor asked about the nature of god as presented in the Old Testament. Rather than responding from a theological perspective, I considered it from a modern reading of the Bible, asking, What kind of business leader was Yahweh? This was not by chance because my career at that point dealt with issues of corporate governance and management. Interestingly, I found that one can argue Yahweh’s management style evolves from an entrepreneurial, hands-on deity to a maturing manager who, overtime, introduces more sophisticated management and control methods to achieve his goals. The cause for these changes is that Yahweh, like any good manager, learns from experience. His evolution is similar to that of many entrepreneurs who create new ventures and navigate them to successful organizations. In Yahweh’s case, his brand dominates the religion market, with Christianity taking about a 32 percent share worldwide. In other words, Yahweh’s story is not unlike that of Bill Gates or Henry Ford, evolving from a temperamental, even eccentric, entrepreneur to the avuncular, but distant, Chairman of the Board. And the idea tied in beautifully with the notion of a religious market. Arguably, Yahweh is the world’s first and oldest capitalist and, to this point, most successful. |
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Last Updated ( Friday, 02 November 2007 )
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Written by Lauren Smith
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Wednesday, 08 August 2007 |
 Loss of Innocence
Read Chapter 1 of Anne Newton Wather's book here.... I Early Summer 1789 The Bordeaux Valley, Château de Beaumont The young rider urged his mount on, propelled by the thunderheads building on the distant horizon and by his need to reach the Château de Beaumont to inform its countess, Eugénie Devereux, about what he had learned.
Sitting alone in her sun-drenched garden, Comtesse de Beaumont was unaware of the gathering storm. She was the last in a long and proud lineage dating back to the reign of Charlemagne when the emperor rewarded her ancestor’s loyalty with substantial holdings in the Bordeaux valley. Down through the generations, the de Beaumonts’ fidelity and political astuteness were invaluable to the reigning powers of France. Groomed from an early age by a doting mother and father, Eugénie Devereux assumed the mantle of responsibility at the time of their premature death and carried it lightly on her young shoulders. Now, no longer a young maid, she is a woman in the prime of life, a person of influence and an active member of the nobility’s inner circle. |
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 18 August 2007 )
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Written by Lauren Smith
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Wednesday, 08 August 2007 |
Erik Quisling about his book, Fables from the MudAnother Great Interview, Provided for you by the Virtual Book Review Network  Fables from the Mud Erik Quisling: I initially came up with the idea for Fables from the Mud shortly after I graduated college. In the course of my soul searching and trying to figure out my place in the world, I was struck with the idea of a clam who was trying to do the exact same thing. For some reason it struck me as extremely amusing. This is how The Angry Clam, the first fable in my book, was born. Lauren Smith: Do you see Fables From the Mud as a satire, cultural commentary or something more? Erik Quisling: Fables From The Mud is about three little creatures – a clam, an ant, and a worm – all of whom are struggling with very human problems. The stories are satirical but in many ways are simply a cultural commentary on the human obsession with finding meaning in the world. All in all, they are designed to be amusing and to get you to see somewhat the absurdity of taking life too seriously. Lauren Smith: How did you develop each of the fables? Erik Quisling: Each fable was born from its own separate bout of inspiration. In each case, it was a single line of text that came to me that was like lighting a fuse that set the story on its course. Once the fuse was lit, the stories pretty much wrote themselves – I simply had to go back and edit them a little bit. |
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Last Updated ( Monday, 14 April 2008 )
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