Traveler Blog Tour – S.E. Anderson Interview
I’m so excited to take part in the TRAVELER blog tour today, celebrating the release of S.E. Anderson’s latest novel!
I read an ARC of TRAVELER and absolutely loved it! This is one great story, a thrilling read that you won’t want to miss if you love heart-wrenching but humorous sci-fi.
About the book:
Sally’s search for Earth isn’t off to a good start: chased out of her hotel room and into the broom closet of a spaceship, she’s accidentally become a stowaway on the Alliance Flagship, Traveler.
But when sabotage and murder show the crew’s true colors, Zander and Blayde are forced to stay and help them out of their mess. Lies, drama, and deceit lead them light years away to a mysterious planet on the edge of the galaxy, where the crew must band together just to stay alive. Which would be much easier if they didn’t have to deal with a diva first-mate, a droid with a religious obsession, and Blayde’s Ex whose brain is a spaceship.
Finding Earth has to be put on the back burner, as Sally’s stuck tending alien boo-boos – and she still has no idea what she’s doing. And she might not live long enough to get off the planet in one piece.
Find it on Amazon.
I was lucky enough to interview S.E. Anderson for this release!
Congratulations on your latest release! In writing TRAVELER, what was your goal? What message did you want to get across to readers?
I worked on Traveler off and on again for years, each time with a little bit something different. When I first wrote it, I wanted to focus on meeting your heroes: on how in the end they are just people, and so are you. I wanted to remind readers that they can be their own heroes, too. When I came at it again, I wanted to look at personal strength. Sally is constantly trying to define herself in relation with others, not seeing she has the tools she needs to be heroic all on her own. Learning to value yourself is one of the first steps in building strong confidence, which Sally will definitely need for the next book.
One of the things I really admire about your writing is how you balance humour with serious topics. Do you ever find this difficult?
Sometimes. Right now, people are starting to get into the world, so they’re more willing to see something absurd as something natural when taken in this context. After all, the stakes remain real, no matter how chaotic they seem. To keep adding that quirk, I need to break readers expectations. Traveler was the hardest to keep silly, but I think I pulled it off in the end.
What was the biggest challenge you faced when writing this book? And did the characters do anything that surprised you?
Mostly trying to inject that humor, I think. That and balancing the massive cast of characters! They all wanted the spotlight, they have massive personalities. Plus, with the unwanted tension between Zander and Sally, their chemistry has stalled a little, and this might put off some readers who were hoping for romance. Balancing all this was a tall order!
What’s next for Sally and the crew? And whats next for you in the non-Starstruck world?
Oh, so much. In the next book, Sally and Blayde start to make a good team. We have a buddy-road trip vibe going where Sally is definitely going to gain some respect from her. Sally and Zander also have to patch up and start talking honestly about where they stand with each other. All this while trying to save the world, so, you know, all in a day’s work!
In the non-Starstruck world, I have quite a few projects I’m working on. I can’t wait to finish YELLOW, a completely different YA-SF novel, and work on CHAOS IN RETROGRADE, an Urban fantasy with a Sci-Fi twist.
As a scientist, did it always seem natural you’d write science fiction? Would you ever consider writing a contemporary story with no SF elements?
It’s that obvious, huh? I figured growing up being obsessed with space would either turn me into a scientist or an author, so I just decided to do both. I probably will end up writing some contemporary, but I’m pretty intimidated by the genre!
And what’s your favourite weird science fact?
Pluto’s “Heart” has water based icebergs floating on a ‘sea’ of solid nitrogen. Also, the Milky Way smells of rum and tastes like raspberries.
Thanks so much for taking part in the interview, and congrats on your release!
