Science Fiction
Date Published: July 1, 2018
Thanks to nanochips implanted in human brains, the world is at peace in 2055. But not everyone likes having their emotions controlled, or their religion suppressed.
Eighteen-year-old Raissa embarks upon a perilous mission to free the world, just days before the release of nanochip Version 7, which will broadcast every citizen's thoughts to the Collective.
The countdown has started, and Raissa must make choices that jeopardize the lives of billions, including the only boy she has ever loved.
Note: Some discussion of technology, some “techno-speak”; clean, no sex or swearing; some non-graphic violence, a tiny bit of graphic violence.
Interview with Scott Cramer
Can you tell us a
little bit about the characters in Eden Chip?
Raissa, 18, lives with her grandfather in Jerusalem. The
year is 2055, and nanochips implanted in peoples’ brains promote peace and harmony
in society. The environment has healed. Violence
is non-existent. Nanochips, however, physically punish an individual for
practicing religion. Raissa’s grandfather and many others pray daily and suffer
as a result.
Raissa finds herself in a
dilemma. She loves her grandfather and will do anything to end his suffering.
She, alone, can go on a perilous mission to Boston to free the world of
nanochips because the chip in her brain has never functioned properly. She can
lie and, if necessary, kill.
The burden weighs on her.
Part of her would like to lead a normal life. She dreams of falling in love someday.
But circumstances have put her on a different trajectory, one that will likely
end her life.
*
Caleb, 18, lives in Boston. He works at NanoArtisans, the
company that develops nanochips. One of the youngest employees, he earned a Ph.D. in neural programming at sixteen years of
age. Caleb’s childhood dream was to play viola in the symphony, but his ability
to play the viola mysteriously vanished at age nine. Both of Caleb’s parents had been musicians, but they
had been killed in the rebellion. When nanochips were first introduced, many
segments of the population put up resistance.
Caleb is shy, and he uses
work as an excuse to avoid dating. Dr. Petrov, the developer of the chip, is
Caleb’s God. Technology is also Caleb’s God. That Petrov has amassed unlimited
power with the ability to control people’s lives is positive in Caleb’s eyes.
Caleb and Raissa will soon
find their lives entangled.
*
Ashminov, 35, is a Bulgarian
hacker who lives in Rome. An introvert, Ashminov enjoys watching nature
documentaries. Years earlier, he developed M-code, a ‘morphing programming
language’ which he used to hack polluters and other enemies of the environment.
Dr. Petrov, another
Bulgarian, stole M-code from Ashminov and used it to form the basis of
nanochips. Now, Ashminov is motivated to develop code that will neutralize
nanochips in the population. He calls it ‘devourware.’
Ashminov will deliver his devourware
to Raissa. She, in turn, will use Caleb to spirit it unknowingly inside the
NanoArtisan’s firewall. When Petrov’s true intentions become known, Raissa,
Caleb, and Ashminov will form an unlikely trio trying to save humankind.
How long would you say it takes you to write a book?
One to three years.
What is your favorite childhood book?
Charlotte’s Web
What was the hardest scene from Eden Chip?
From a writing craft standpoint, I really struggled with
the following. I write in ‘third-person limited.’ In each chapter, I feature a
different character. You know what that character is thinking and feeling. You
deduce what the other characters are thinking by their actions alone. The Eden
Chip, itself, is a tiny device implanted in the brain that allows
person-to-person telepathy. When two of my main characters, Raissa and Caleb,
have Eden Chips, they can see each other’s thoughts and intentions. It gets
more complicated when another character, Dr. Petrov, joins the mental party.
There are some similarities between an omniscient point
of view: the author and the reader know what’s
happening in everyone’s head. But now the characters
also know what the other characters are thinking.
I received a comment from NetGalley reviewer that let me
know I might have succeeded in keeping things straight.
“Each chapter tells the story from a different point of
view and sometimes, the view shifts in the middle of a chapter and in the midst of a circumstance. I found this style of
writing to be engaging and unique from all of the other stories I've read.”
What made you want to become a writer?
Stories fascinate me. I gravitate to people who are storytellers. Public radio’s ‘This American Life’ is one of my favorite programs. When
I see conflict in life, I rarely let my
emotions take over. I lock onto the unfolding
story at the root of the conflict. As a writer,
I get to tell stories as well as share my point of view about various aspects
of life.
Favorite song: Morning Dew – Grateful
Dead
Favorite book: For Whom the Bell Tolls – Ernest Hemmingway
Favorite movie: Doctor Strangelove
Favorite tv show: The
Wire
Favorite Food: Avocado
Favorite drink: Whiskey, straight
Favorite website:
The Daily Beast
Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule
to visit with us!
About the Author
Scott Cramer has optioned two screenplays, written for national magazines, and authored four novels: EDEN CHIP and the TOUCAN TRILOGY (Night of the Purple Moon, Colony East & Generation M). Scott and his wife reside outside Lowell, Massachusetts.
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thanks for hosting
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