May 2016

Q & A with Wendy Nikel

1. Can you tell us a little what your story, "Midnight on Addison Street," is about?

This is a little story I wrote about a seedy politician who believes his life is in danger and the unusual source he consults for answers about who's behind it.

2. How did you come up with the idea?

Without giving too much away, I'll just say there's a particular group of people in the story, and I've had them on my list of story ideas for quite awhile. They're highly organized individuals with access to a wealth of information. It's easy to see why my main character underestimates them, but he won't make that mistake again.

3. What is your inspiration for writing as a whole?

I love exploring "what if"s -- What if the world ran out of coffee? What if people could upload their consciousness after death? What if those in control of our nation's greatest stores of knowledge had a score to settle? I love coming up with unexpected scenarios, constructing a world and characters to go with them, and seeing where my imagination will take me.

4. Could you tell us a bit about yourself?

Anyone with access to my library records would probably be able to tell that I'm a mom to small boys (who love LEGOs and pugs), that I'm a history and genealogy buff, and that a number of people in my household enjoy sci-fi and action movies. They might also note that I have a book overdue right now (oops!) and that at one point, I considered starting a photography business.

5. Where can listeners find more of your work?

www.wendynikel.com lists all my short work, the most recent of which is "The Shape-Shifter's Mother" at Daily Science Fiction. You can also find my latest story news on my Facebook page or Twitter (@wendynikel).

6. Any new work we should keep an eye out for?

I will have a short story called "Miss Genevieve's Finishing School" in the spring edition of Ember: A Journal of Luminous Things.

7. (And just for Juli's curiosity: What are you reading now?)

I'm currently beta-reading for one of my fabulous critique partners, Rebecca M. Latimer, and after that I'm looking forward to starting ALL THE BIRDS IN THE SKY by Charlie Jane Anders.

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Editor's Note: If you enjoyed this story, you might be interested in reading the whole anthology, It's Come to Our Attention, with many more great stories. It's available on Amazon and Smashwords.

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