Interview with A. R. Shaw, Author of See the Light

What’s the story behind the story? What inspired you to write See the Light?

I come up with storylines while in the shower or driving my Toyota FJ with no particular place to go. And while on one of these journeys, I wanted a family with no destination except safety, but when they saw the light… they knew they’d found something but at what cost?

I find it fascinating, as a post-apocalyptic author, that we as humans go to a place of fear when we don’t understand something. And from that place of fear of the unknown, we often apply magic where it has no place to exist. This realization comes from my (hippy) mother… as a child, when something was amiss in the household, she would often blame it on Mr. Ghost, who committed the noise, moved an item, or wanted to displace blame in some way. Which often led me to a kind of quiet doubt. This practice made me skeptical and distrustful, lol. (Thanks, mom) And while coming up with See the Light, I found the characters on the edge of magic when they found sanctuary in a house with lights that they could not turn off, in a world where electricity had been vanquished long before.

There’s always a reasonable explanation… if only we’re brave enough to face the mystery.

If you had to pick theme songs for the main characters of See the Light, what would they be?

The Quality of Mercy by Max Richter… in the beginning.

What’s your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

I read mostly thriller and dystopian. Not necessarily post-apocalyptic.

What books are on your TBR pile right now?

I’m still reading The Lincoln Highway but next up is C. A. Fletcher’s Dead Water.

What scene in your book was your favorite to write?

I loved the frustration the family went through trying to figure out the light source. Monty walking through the field with a lamp at night near the sundial.

Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.)

Besides my space heater (different interview), I’d say listening to Two Steps from Hell on Pandora is also a quirky writing habit. It really gets things moving in an action scene.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

Keep moving forward…

If you could choose one thing for readers to remember after reading your book, what would it be?

There’s always an explanation… one you may not want to face but it’s there in the darkness… bring your light.

A. R. Shaw is the author of the new book See the Light

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