Interview with Author Karen A. Wyle

Alien beings, telepathic twins, feuding interspecies feuding; what more could you ask for in a good sci-fi read? “Twin-Bred” by Karen A. Wyle, has all these ingredients and more.
“Twin-Bred” centers on a scientific experiment, involving fraternal twins, that’s being used in a diplomatic effort to bring together a community of humans and aliens on the planet Tofarn. Some might call it sci-fi with a message.

So, what does author Karen A. Wyle have to say about “Twin-Bred”?




Q: Twins have always been a source of curiosity. Do you think the superstitious beliefs involving twins, and more recently theories about psychic bonds, make twins a good
subject for a science fiction novel?


A: I think the superstitions are one aspect of a perennial fascination with twins -- and anything fascinating is a great starting point for science fiction.

I don't know when the idea of a psychic or telepathic bond between twins first appeared in science fiction, but one relatively early example is Robert Heinlein's Time for the Stars.


Q: How did you get the idea for “Twin-Bred”?


A: I read an article about amazing interactions between twins in utero, captured on video. The researchers had found synchronized movement, touching, even kissing. Either the article or a comment on the article mentioned the traumatic, often devastating, impact on those whose twin -- identical or fraternal -- had died in utero or shortly after birth.

Straining this information through the science fiction filter in my mind, I imagined a scientist seeking to overcome the comprehension gap between two intelligent species by way of the bond between twins. It would be natural for the scientist who conceived this idea to be a twin. It would add emotional depth to the story if she were a twin survivor. And for added strangeness and interest, what if she had somehow kept her lost twin alive as a companion, who could be a character in the story? . . .


Q: Are you the kind of author who writes because you want to or because you feel you must write?


A: I'd say I'm in some poorly explored territory in between. I've felt since early childhood that I was meant to be a writer. I spent many years searching for the proper medium, and then many more turning away from nonprofessional writing entirely. When I finally started writing fiction again, I felt that I'd come home.


Q: Judging from “Twin-Bred”, you clearly have a very vivid imagination. Do you think sci-fi authors are generally more imaginative than authors who specialize in other genres?


A: I wouldn't say so. Any author of fiction will be imaginative where human behavior, motivation and emotion are concerned. Authors of historical fiction must vividly imagine innumerable details of the past. Perhaps science fiction authors have a different kind of curiosity, or our imaginations potentially wander through a wider range of topics.


Q: What do you hope to accomplish with “Twin-Bred”?


A: I hope to interest and move the reader. I have a certain underlying fondness for thinking, feeling beings that I hope the reader will appreciate and share. I also hope to spur interest in my future work!


Q: Readers have long been fascinated with the idea of alien beings. In your opinion, how much of this is due to our natural curiosity about the unknown?


A: I'm sure that's part of it. Another root of this fascination might be our curiosity about each other. Does that fellow over there really see the same colors as I do, or feel the same emotions? How different is he from me, inside?


Q: To what extent, if at all, do you identify with the character of Mara?


A: Quite a bit. Like Mara, I'm impatient, though less likely to explode as a result. I am no scientist, but I have an inquiring mind. I'm persistent and stubborn, as Mara is. Finally, neither Mara nor I have a great track record at forming and maintaining social connections, although both of us are getting better at it.


Q: Is it difficult to make a fantastical story like “Twin-Bred” relatable to the average reader?


A: Not the average science fiction reader! :-)

I do try to explain things enough, while not burying the reader in scientific detail (which I might not be able to provide, in some instances).


Q: Were the conflicts that humans and aliens in “Twin-Bred” experience, as a result of living in the same communities, inspired by the difficulties people of different races or nationalities often have, living side by side?


A: In a general way, yes. I was also inspired and influenced by previous fictional treatments of comprehension gaps between humans and aliens: Mary Doria Russell's The Sparrow, Ursula K. LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness, Niven and Pournelle's The Mote in God's Eye.


Q: What are your future writing plans?


A: I've sent my next novel, which is not science fiction, out to some beta readers -- and I'd love to find a few more beta readers for it. Its working title is Reflections -- and whether that should remain the title is one of the questions on which I've asked beta readers to comment.

In this novel, the members of a family reunite in the afterlife, confront unfinished business, and resolve the mystery that tore the family apart. I have constructed an afterlife with features particularly suited to this purpose. For example, anyone can be any age, depending on how they're feeling and what issues they need to confront. People can relive remembered events without any omission or distortion -- and they can share those memories with others. Two people who lived through some event or moment together can relive it from each other's point of view.

I'm currently editing the still-unnamed sequel to Twin-Bred. I'll be looking for beta readers for that book later this summer.

I hope to take part in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) for the third time next November.

I'd like to publish more short stories as ebooks. (So far, I have one, "The Baby," free on Smashwords and Amazon. It's about human cloning.) Recently, while I was reviewing stock photos for the cover of Reflections, I kept coming upon fascinating faces that wouldn't do for any of that book's characters. I put together a lightbox called "Worth Writing About," and I hope to build stories around some of those photographs.