World of Shell and Bone

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F.A.Q.






I

n a world ravaged by a nuclear holocaust, Vika Cannon knows there are no guarantees: no guarantees of safety, no guarantees that your neighbor is not actually a spy for the government, and no guarantees you’ll be allowed to emigrate to a new life in China.

New Amana is dying. Food and water are scarce, and people suffering from radiation-caused mutations–the Nukeheads–are the new class of homeless.

Vika has just one purpose: to produce healthy progeny using a Husband assigned by the Match Clinic. Unhealthy children are carted away to Asylums to be experimented on, just as Vika’s little sister Ceres was, eight years ago. Parents incapable of producing healthy progeny are put to death in gas chambers.

When she’s assigned a Husband shortly after her twentieth birthday, Vika expects him to be complacent and obedient. But Shale Underwood has a secret. He is a member of the Radicals, the terrorist group intent on overthrowing the government. And Shale has information about Ceres.

As she learns more about the Rads’s plan, Vika finds herself drawn to Shale in ways she’d never imagined. When freedom calls in the way of a healthy pregnancy, will she betray her government and risk death for Shale and Ceres?

BOOK CLUB DISCUSSION GUIDE

The following questions might help book clubs discuss World of Shell and Bone with an eye for critical details within the book. If you’d like to contact me to ask questions directly, I’d be happy to chat with your book club via email or Skype (or in person if you live in Charleston, SC or the surrounding areas).

Please note: If you haven’t read the book yet, some of these questions might serve as spoilers.

1. In chapter one, Vika says, “I am baffled by mirrors… I am nothing more than a collection of genetic puzzle pieces—I understand and accept this fully.” What does she mean by this? Does the concept of being nothing more than genetically linked to one’s biological parents make sense in today’s society?

2. When Vika says, “Progeny is our only weapon now,” what does she mean? Is healthy progeny New Amana’s weapon, or is it Vika’s weapon against the government as well?

3. Falls writes, “Most of the men in power were gone; healthy young men in the military had been killed. A feminist regime was born and New Amana was created to rise from the ashes.” During World War 2, American women entered the workforce to step into jobs men left behind when they went to war. Do you think that a situation where a feminist government takes over in the wake of the obliteration of a male-dominated government might be plausible in today’s society?

4. When Shale and Vika engage in sexual intercourse for the first time, Shale holds his body in such a way so as to not make any more contact with Vika’s body than necessary. Before they begin, they are required to say the words, “For New Amana.” What might the purpose of saying these words be? Why doesn’t Shale want to touch Vika beyond what is necessary to make a baby?

5. The radiation-poisoned homeless, those whose scars are visible, are called Nukeheads. Why is the general society of New Amana opposed to them? Is there a parallel sub-class of people like the Nukeheads in the society in which you live?

6. In chapter ten, Vika sees her brother, Mica. She is surprised to see that Shale is taller than Mica, observing, “In my mind, Mica was always the tallest person on Earth. There was never anyone who towered over him.” What do you think Vika means by this? What does this tell us about her relationship with Mica?

7. Time seems to have an ephemeral quality to Vika in the first part of the book. For instance, in chapter thirteen, she says, “Time begins to stop and stutter, looping back on itself until I can’t remember whether it’s today, yesterday, or the year before last. “ Why would time seem to be so inconsistent to someone in the dystopian society in which Vika lives? Have you noticed instances in your life when time seemed to sped up or slowed down? What does this say of our thought processes and ability to weather harsh life experiences?

8. Why do you think Vika decides to give her travel vouchers to Naiad’s partner and daughter, even though she didn’t know Naiad well? Was her decision connected or influenced at all by her last visit with her mother?

9. When Vika sees Ceres for the first time since she was taken to the Asylum, she notes, “There is no soul there.” Do you think Vika’s opinion changes as she spends more time with her sister? Is Ceres as devoid of emotion as Vika initially believes? What led you to this conclusion?

10. Even though she is warned that the government might be building an army in China, Vika makes the decision to board the ship with Ceres. Why do you think she did this? Do you feel her decision was based, in any part, on denial?

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 Will there be a sequel?

Yes! I’m anticipating release date of said sequel to be sometime in late 2013, with a companion novella to be released in the summer. I’ll keep you guys updated. Alternately, you can sign up for my mailing list to be kept in the loop-de-loop.

When will the paper version be out?

I’m in the process of converting it to my legal name (S.K. Falls) from Adriana Ryan, which is the pen name I’d originally published it under. I’ve had to take the paper version down, but I’ll update this as soon as it’s back on the shelves!

Is there an audiobook?

As of this writing in June 2013, the audiobook for World of Shell and Bone is under production! Yay! I have a fabulous narrator for the voice of Vika Cannon, and I think you’re going to love her.

Where did you get the idea for the story?

Like most writers I know, I get my ideas when I’m really inspired by something I see or read. For World of Shell and Bone, it happened to be both.

The first thing that started the idea bubbling away in my brain was an excellent movie called TiMER. It’s an indie movie that deals with a futuristic world where people get implanted with a timer that counts down the days till they meet their soul mate. It’s supposed to make life easier, knowing when you’ll meet The One, and who exactly it is. There’s no divorce and, supposedly, there are no broken hearts.

The second thing that got me on the road to writing World of Shell and Bone was the book The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (who just happens to be one of my favorite writers of all time). Atwood raised some important questions in her story: what happens if all power is taken away from females? What is reproduction is the only “point” of society? I decided to spin my own tale about those concepts. [Note: In no way am I comparing my writing to that of the great and magnificent Ms. Atwood. I'm merely exposing how much of a fangirl I am.]

What’s with all the French words?

Since the North and South American continents are hit hard by the War of the Nations, all the cultures from the countries that used to exist have sort of fused and dispersed. I imagined Vika to be living, geographically, close to the northeast of what is in real life the United States. I wanted the reader to feel some of the French Canadian influences, which is why I chose to have some of the terms be French. [Also, French is super-duper fun.]

Why did you write such a dark story?

Mainly because I’m a dark person at heart. Ha! No, really, I think dark stories are the most fun because they force you to consider issues you might not otherwise consider. I also love dwelling on terrible What-If scenarios, probably because I like to torture myself. I’ve always been a little twisted that way.

Are you trying to say that feminists are evil?

I know that some people have been angry that I wrote feminists as being so totalitarian. But my intention wasn’t to say that a government run by feminists would be a dictatorship–it was to say that power corrupts without regard to gender. In fact, the “feminists” in power aren’t really feminists at all. In the story, it’s clearly revealed how they use the same tactics as the people before them to control the population. The only thing they did differently was to reduce men down to the level they’d been reduced to before.

Is there a soundtrack for World of Shell and Bone?

Okay, so confession time: I can’t listen to music while I write. I know some writers can, and I totally respect that (and am jealous of it), but sadly, I’m not one of them. That being said, I do have a song that I think symbolizes Shale and Vika’s relationship fairly well. Here it is. Listen and let me know if you agree!

Also, if you’re the visual sort, check out World of Shell and Bone‘s Pinterest board.

Wait, are you Adriana Ryan? Or S.K. Falls? Huh?

Sorry, sorry. I’m 100% to blame for all the confusion. I originally released the book under my pen name, Adriana Ryan. I’m currently in the process of converting the book to my legal name, S.K. Falls, which is what I’ve decided to write under after all. So there you have it. Used to be Adriana Ryan, now I’m S.K. Falls.

I’m part of a bookclub, and we were wondering if you’d chat with us.

I’d love to! Please go here and check out the page that contains the discussion guide. Then contact me and we can get started.

Will you sign my copy?

If you’d like to order a signed copy or mail me a copy of your book to sign, please use the tab at the top to contact me. Alternately, if you’re a digital reader, you can visit this free site to request an autograph!

Will World of Shell and Bone be released in other languages?

That’s a great question. I’m looking into foreign rights and translations, but it’s a big, big world out there. So stay tuned!

Do you have any tips for aspiring writers?

Run, don’t walk, to your nearest bookstore (or e-bookstore) and buy Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott. She describes the writer’s life in a funny, yet very real, way. Most people imagine writers locked away in a room with a glass of whiskey at one elbow, madly typing away at their keyboards. The truth is a lot less glamorous. There are some serious ups and downs to the writing life—everyone has them. You’ll want to give up about thirty-three times a day. But it’s also so, so worth it.

If you want to write, the first thing you should be doing is writing (I know—crazy, right?). Write a little bit everyday. If you don’t have a book you’re working on yet, just start by writing what you’re comfortable writing. Journals/diaries, short stories, poems, all of those count. Concentrate on getting better, on plucking those words out of the ether and getting them down on paper.

If you can find a critique group in your local area, that’s excellent. If not, look online. There are so many resources, and you can connect with writers all over the world. It’s a humbling and exciting experience. Some of my best friends are writers I’ve met online. But make sure people who read your work are going to be brutally honest, because that’s how you learn. The second thing you should be doing is reading. Read good books—books with excellent prose—and books in genres you hope to write.

It’s not particularly difficult to get started on the writing path if you truly love words and have a burning desire to tell stories. The hardest part, I think, is training yourself to be disciplined enough to write every single day. Most writers write because they’d die if they didn’t (melodramatic as that sounds!). So go forth and conquer that pen!