I was privileged to invite Author Mike Meierfor an interview to discuss his latest bookJoinWith.Me and the inspiration behind it. Enjoy!
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What's
your book about, and what inspired you to write it?
JoinWith.Me is a cautionary tale about our
increasing fusion with technology as a society. The idea of this book came to
me years ago when I was working for an internet marketing company. I was well
aware that Google, Facebook, and the like track every keyboard move you make,
then sell the data they have collected about you. Thus, I only worked in
“incognito” mode in the Firefox browser; cleared the cache and cookies off my
computer several times a day; and used a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Once,
while working in incognito mode in the Facebook account of a customer, there
was a pop-up by Facebook, suggesting that I connect with someone. There was a
picture of the Mexican gentleman who had painted my house a few years earlier.
We had never communicated over the internet. How is this even possible? At that
moment, I felt as if the internet were a living human being that was spying on me.
That was when I wrote the first draft of this story.
Who
is your target audience, and why do you think this book will appeal to them?
I’m sure everybody has moments when the
internet appears overbearing and maybe even overwhelming—pop-up ads that remind
you of what you were looking at earlier; YouTube suggestions that are right on
point; and websites welcoming you back. That is the target audience for JoinWith.Me:
everyone who has the uneasy feeling that this merger of technology with human
life may get out of hand.
What
message do you wish to pass across to your readers with this book?
JoinWith.Me is a cautionary tale about our
increasing fusion with technology as a society. There may be unintended
consequences if we don’t control the technology that surrounds us. That’s why I
quote Goethe’s “Sorcerer’s Apprentice” (better known to most Americans as the
Mickey Mouse Fantasia story) at the beginning: “Wrong I was in calling Spirits,
I avow, For I find them galling, Cannot rule them now.”
What
was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?
I’m now preparing my next book for
publication (Palmetto Publishing, January 2021), “The Love Hex or Nicest Flings
in Mexico.” I started that story in the early 1990s. Then life got in the way.
Years later, I wrote a little more after the Olympic skier I met on a plane suggested
that someone has to die in the story. Off and on I added a few ideas. Several
years ago, I sent a draft to my old friend Thomas to hear his opinion. When my
regular job came to a standstill with COVID-19, I finally had time to focus on
the story and finish it.
As
a writer, is there anything you've learned about yourself while writing this
book? Absolutely. First of all, I learned that
writing a long story is hard work that requires dedication. I have forgone many
events and social activities to concentrate on writing (and rewriting)
JoinWith.Me. It took me more than a year. As for what I have learned about
myself…well, I never thought I could do it. I completely lacked the confidence
until I started. What helped me a lot was to frequently request criticism. Frequent
criticism is crucial to writing a story that others can follow and enjoy. After
all, a story is written for an audience. For example, the original ending of
JoinWith.Me was much more downbeat, but each critique I received suggested that
the audience would not accept that. So I changed the ending about a dozen times
until I found one that is acceptable to me and the audience (I hope).
For
your own reading, do you prefer ebooks or traditional paper/hard back books,
and why?
I am old-fashioned in many ways. Thus, I
refer to myself as a dinosaur. I do read eBooks occasionally, but I strongly
prefer traditional paper because I can mark it up, reread something, or just
fold the page where I’ll continue next time.
What
is your niche genre, and if you were to write in a different genre, what would
it be?
I don’t have a niche genre (yet). I create
stories. The stories I have completed so far are in different genres (Sci-Fi,
Comedy, Thriller), but all have a dramatic story at the core. If I were forced
to pick a genre, it would probably be “dramatic stories with occasional humor
sprinkled in.”
What
books and authors have most influenced you?
Number one on that list is “The Tripods”
trilogy of John Christopher (Sci-Fi). I read those books when I was very young
(and actually reread them not too long ago). But I also enjoy dramatic stories
that are at times humorous (such as Wilde’s “The Picture of Dorian Gray”... even
though it was decades ago that I read it, I can still cite from it).
Is
there anything you'd like readers to know about you?
That there is a lesson for
every aspiring writer in the fact that I finished JoinWith.Me: If I can do it,
anybody can. Few people have faced as many obstacles in finishing a book (or
story). If you want to put a story to paper (or computer), let nothing hold you
back.
Do
you have any more books in the works?
Yes, my next book, a Rom-Com, will be
published in January, “The Love Hex or Nicest Flings in Mexico,” based on a
screenplay I wrote. I’ll probably turn some of my other screenplays into books.
Do
you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?
That’s a fact of life—we have to deal with
the opinions of the people who surround us. Sometimes those opinions are
negative (for whatever reason). When I receive negative criticism, I try to
figure out if there is something I can do better. Later I may decide to discard
the criticism. I’m glad I carefully reviewed the first critique of the first
draft of JoinWith.Me from “the Dr. Phil of script analysts,” Mike Cheda. It was
only one paragraph, but he basically told me that my protagonist was such as
wuss that nobody would want to read about him. I took his suggestion to heart
and completely rewrote the first draft. I’m glad I did.
What is the cover of
the book about?
The cover represents a stylized siphonophore,
the Hula Skirt Siphonophore to be exact. In fact, “Siphonophora” was the original
title of the story, but most people could not pronounce or understand it.
Siphhh…what? So I changed it to something simpler, JoinWith.Me, just like the
creature’s website in the story. I searched for a living organism that could symbolize
the future of humanity. I first found slime mold, single-celled organisms that
congregate and form a single body. By the way, slime mold is smarter than you
think; it can move toward more fertile ground, move out of the sun, and grow
back together if separated. But slime mold does not sound very exciting as the
future of humanity. Then I found the siphonophores, sea creatures that consist
of other animals that connect to function as a single organism—a so-called
colonial organism. Curiously, a siphonophore does not have a brain. It is
largely unknown how they function. I just added an electronic circuit around it
on the cover to allude to the fusion of biology with technology.
How
can readers get in touch with or follow you (website, personal blog, social
media handle, Goodreads)?
I create a separate website for every story I
finish, and there is always an email link. For example, https://JoinWithMe.tv has a
link to my email.
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Mike
Meier grew up in a blue-collar housing project in Germany. On his own since his
teens, he has lived in several different countries, including Argentina and
Japan, and has worked jobs such as washing dishes, repairing bicycles, and
painting homes. When he is not writing books or award-winning screenplays,
you’ll find him playing Latin and Flamenco guitar in the Washington, DC area.
He holds a master’s degree in political science, as well as a Juris Doctor and
Master of Laws. Mystery is in Mike Meier’s blood—his grandfather was the 1930s
traveling magician and fortune-teller known as Wladi-Kami.
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