Emotions is an exciting YA sci-fi novel perfect for lovers of Doctor Who and Star Trek. It's an interesting focus on the emotional scope of the human mind and the development of artificial intelligence and the awareness of a computer. The story follows Jason, an alien with a computer installed in his brain to help him navigate Earth. This tale is poignant at an age where technology seems likely to surpass us and it's definitely worth a read! I interviewed Arnie Cantarero to discover why he's so fascinated with the concept of emotions, the importance of Hispanic representation in literature and why he'd love to pick the brain of Doctor Who.
What would you say makes your book stand out in the sci-fi
genre?
Where to start on this one. So many books I’ve read have a
chosen one character, while that can work extremely well for some books, I
wanted to stay away from that. In Emotions, we have a binary being; An
emotionless alien (that’s not evil) and an implanted sentient computer, and
everyone in his planet is like him, and there are billions of them. He’s also
depowered compared to the rest of his kind.
On top of that, the main character is Hispanic (well,
appears Hispanic since he’s an alien) and a large majority happens in a
nondescript (on purpose) Latin American country along with other locales around
the world.
All and all, I wanted a story that would leave the reader
not only wanting more but feel satisfied once they finished reading it.
If the book was adapted into a film, who would you cast as
Jason and why?
I’ve often wondered about that. While I’ve seen movies that
star well-known actors, if and when, Emotions gets turned into a movie, I’d
like it to be a star creator, not a star vehicle. I’ve seen so many amazing
actors in little-known movies, why not give them a chance at the big time?
Why did you decide to focus on the concept of emotions in
the book?
A good question. Growing up, I was a bit of an odd duck,
never quite understanding why people did things or how people worked. I’d say
thank you when people insulted me (drove them nuts) since I didn’t get what the
big deal was. Then it hit me; someone with no emotions would try to fit in but
wouldn’t understand the basics for how, or why, we do things, and therefore
wouldn’t know how to respond to our world. I also realized how important
emotions are to further advance us as people, they drive us after all. That’s
when Jason was born.
Where do you take your inspiration from as an author?
From everything I see. I’ll be watching a tv show, and something
in it will get me thinking to the point that I’ll come up with something new
(solved an issue in the sequel this way) or be in the real world, talking to
people, and the conversation will inspire me. We live in an amazing world, full
of ideas waiting to be discovered if we’re willing to look.
If you could only read one book for the rest of your life,
what would it be and why?
It’s an older book, but I've read it like six times (at
least). It’s the novelization of 2001: a space odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke. The
movie is one of my earliest memories, and when I found out it had a book, well,
I just had to get it. The HAL 9000 computer is an amazing character, I wanted
more than what I saw in the movie. I even got the audio book just in case I
find myself in a very long drive (another way to come up with new ideas and
find new places).
If you could sit down with one literary character for a cup
of tea, who would it be?
While I wouldn’t want to become a companion (maybe) I’d say
Doctor Who. I know he’s technically a TV character, but he’s had his fair share
of books. He’s the ultimate nerd, I’d love to pick his brain.
Has writing always been a dream of yours or was there a
particular moment that inspired you to pursue it?
A bit of both, actually. I remember always coming up with
little stories, daydreaming, (especially at school) but didn’t quite know how
to communicate what I was seeing. Everything came together in High School when
my English teacher (aren’t teachers awesome?) showed us how to write essays.
That’s when I realized how much I loved writing. Heck, my classmates asked me
to do their essays, and I’d write them for free. I remember writing an essay
about the superiority of mechanical pencils over pens. Got full marks but my
teacher said it was the strangest essay he’d ever read. I took a lot of pride
in that.
What advice would you give to aspiring authors hoping to
pursue a writing career?
Never ever give up on your dream and keep reading. The road
is littered with people that may have had the next big thing but gave up before
they got there. Be the one that makes it to the end.
Emotions is available as an ebook on the Kindle or a paperback on Amazon
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