Featured Interview With Leigh M. Lane
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
In addition to writing dark speculative fiction for over twenty-five years, I’ve sung lead and backup vocals for bands ranging from classic rock to the blues, performed the National Anthem for the opening of a Dodgers game, dabbled in fine arts, worked in retail management, earned my black belt in karate, and accrued a moderate level of expertise in animal care and behavior. I have a BA in English and graduated from UNLV Magna Cum Laude. I currently live in the dusty outskirts of Sin City with my husband, an editor and educator, and one very spoiled cat.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I was eight or nine when I became an avid reader, and I also started writing somewhere around that age. My very favorite author back then was Roald Dahl. Imagine my delight when, years later, I learned he also wrote dark speculative fiction for adults!
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors are Vonnegut, Poe, Orwell, Wells, Serling, King, Koontz, Stapledon, Zelazny (guess which one), and Louise Erdritch. I prefer to read dark speculative fiction, primarily horror, but I find inspiration in all different types of genres and writers.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is a dystopian novel titled THE PRIVATE SECTOR. It takes place in the near future, when government has been dissolved into nothing and the US president has been replaced by the National CEO. Everything is corporatized, privatized. If your house catches fire, you’d better have good fire insurance (and the money to pay the deductible). If someone robs your house, hopefully you’ve picked the right police coverage provider. Unfortunately, when business gets slow, those you pay to keep your world safe tend to resort to crime to pick things back up (or to convince people other insurance carriers are inferior). It’s a scary world with no checks and balances.
The story revolves around the Irwin family: Dianne, a painter (although art is slowly becoming obsolete due to anti-waste movements); John, a building inspector who’s overseeing a new, underground development project designed to combat climate change; and their son, Junior. Dianne’s sister, Jenny, is a junkie who makes life pretty miserable for her family, her father is a hard-working doormat, and her mother is an entitled, judgmental b***h. With society devolving, the bottom line ruling all, antibiotic-resistant disease plaguing the nation, and various special interest groups turning the streets into a battleground, the Irwins are just doing what they can to hold together.
THE PRIVATE SECTOR prequels WORLD-MART and AFTERMATH.
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