JB: Explain your genre — “transgender superhuman” sounds like a parody — and parody isn’t easy these days due to all the wild real life plot lines that fill the headlines daily.
PH: You bring up a great point. “The First Transgender Superhuman” is actually just one of three stories in Mortal Gods: Ignition. And both the title and the plot of the story take into account the modern obsession with the concept of “transgender.” There is an element of parody within the title and even the plot, but ultimately the story is drama.
I intentionally put “transgender” into the title and the plot because it is a contemporary story for contemporary times — only it is crafted in a fashion unlike anything you’ve read. In fact, “The First Transgender Superhuman” is so dead-on in addressing contemporary issues that you’ll be amazed at how eerily close the “transgender” element of the plot comes to mirroring real-life events. (Read the story and then read this article on how the CIA has a strategy to recruit more “transgender” people.)
“The First Transgender Superhuman” also deals with illegal aliens who are invading and conquering America—another contemporary issue. And if you are worried this is putting too many elements into one short story, it isn’t. Read it to see how all these things come together in a completely unique and satisfying way. The last line of the story is incredibly funny.
The same holds true for the other two stories in Mortal Gods: Ignition (“Like Hail and Fire, Mixed with Blood” and “Warrior”).
Also, all three stories are set in a universe where superhumans — not superheroes — exist and function as they might if they really were alive in our world. In other words, they don’t dress up in spandex and fight crime. Rather they wear regular clothing and are subject to law and order like everyone else.
I created the Mortal Gods universe because both I and the public are fascinated by the concept of superhumans. Furthermore, superhumans aren’t mere fantasy any longer. I recently wrote an assessment for BarbWire that shows how military forces and governments of the world are actively pursuing the creation of them.
So the plots and the titles (of Mortal Gods: Ignition and stories within it) are meant to appeal to a wide audience. In fact, they are meant to appeal to anyone who is an adult. I don’t want this to be a book for conservatives—I want liberals to read and enjoy it too.
I’d like for everyone to read and enjoy my second book of short stories but it probably will appeal more to conservatives. Both stories in Winning through Losing take place in a real-world setting.
If you want to have a good laugh, read “Common Ground” in Winning through Losing. It’s not quite a comedy, but it falls into the humorous category. And if you are a fan of politics, you’ll definitely love it. It’s a tale of how the Big Tent Party is battling the Forward Party in a presidential election. (These are clearly stand-ins for our real-life political parties.) And you know how we constantly hear about how we need to find common ground in politics? That concept plays a huge part in the plot and ultimately results in a funny resolution.
So I’m actually writing in multiple genres and putting contemporary issues in the stories of my two books.
6. JB: Tell us about Liberty Island.
PH: Liberty Island is a webzine featuring libertarian and conservative authors. It was specifically designed to help get people with non-leftist ideologies inserted into the culture. I’m one of the Creators at Liberty Island. Liberty Island didn’t publish Mortal Gods: Ignition or Winning through Losing but the fact that it has taken me on as part of its team is something I appreciate. It also lets my readers know that someone has vetted my fiction and thinks there is something worthwhile in it. In other words, when you buy and read Mortal Gods: Ignition and Winning through Losing, you are getting quality products.
7. JB: What are you working on next?
PH: I’d like to write more Mortal Gods stories. And in keeping with writing solid stories that appeal to all people, I might someday write Mortal Gods stories from different characters’ perspectives—including characters that have entirely opposite beliefs than me. (In fact, it is very possible that none of the people in Mortal Gods: Ignition and Winning through Losing share the exact same beliefs as I do. They are, after all, fiction.)
And I’d like to extend “Common Ground” into an ongoing series. We all can use some solid humor and the end of the story actually leaves open the possibility of sequels. And I think I could write a lot of sequels. Politics and punditry are so outrageous and ridiculous that stories practically write themselves.
Beyond these, there are plenty of other stories I have already outlined. I likely will publish some of them in full at my personal Liberate Liberty website (where I publish updates on my fiction and relevant cultural/entertainment issues) and at my Creator page on Liberty Island.
