CONTRIBUTOR SPOTLIGHT:
Interview with Marc Audet

Rappahannock Review Fiction Editors: The theme of “Surfing the Gene Pool” seems to be having hope and persevering through the challenges in achieving it. Was that what you were striving for, and how did the theme develop for you in this story?

Marc Audet: Initially, I anticipated a dystopian story in which Peter and Mary were living in a future world in which genetically enhanced humans had better physical health but poorer mental and spiritual well-being. However, as I developed Peter and Mary, it occurred to me that some basic human instincts would probably persist into the future. Mary’s biological clock and her desire to start a family leads her to push back against the scientifically optimized mores that seem to be taking over their lives. It is Mary’s revolt that gives hope to the story, that reminds us that we must have some autonomy in order to lead a meaningful life. 

RR: We love the short-form narrative in this story. How did you balance the emotions of hope and frustration so well?

MA:  Peter and Mary are a young, modern couple, well educated, determined to do things right and get ahead. As I wrote the story, I found Peter to be risk averse. Though Mary shares Peter’s ambition and appreciates his attention to detail, she feels the urgency to start a family. The dialogue shows the tension between Peter’s caution and Mary’s instincts. Whenever I hear couples arguing as they try to resolve conflicts, I notice that sentences get abbreviated and pacing changes to match the emotional context of the discussion, and I tried to capture this dynamic in the dialogue. Mary emerges as the decisive one who finds the courage to accept risks in order to move their lives ahead.

RR: We’re interested in the utopian undertones; can you describe how you developed those ideas here? 

MA: This story contains both utopian and dystopian themes. Modern genetic research may lead to a better life, giving us children with no birth defects or hereditary diseases. However, as we are seeing with the internet and social media, there can be unintended consequences, especially if big money gets involved. In this story, genetic technology can allow Peter and Mary to design their own baby. Nothing is left to chance, be it the randomness of conception or the danger of live birth. This story was inspired by an article about the gene editing technology CRISPR, which promised to take genetically modified organisms to a whole new level. More recently, I heard stories about real-time dynamic pricing, often used in online portals selling airline tickets. I wondered, what would our lives look like if something as simple as starting a family led to family planning on the genetic level, and then, once big money got involved, starting a family meant participating in a financially driven Darwinian survival of the richest type of game, that might resemble an abstract form of eugenics. How much personal autonomy are we willing to exchange for more security? The scope of these questions goes well beyond flash fiction.

RR: What are some writing habits that work well for you, or ways you ensure you make time to write regularly?

MA: I keep a diary, which means that I will write a few hundred words every day. I also keep a journal, especially if I am traveling. I am also part of a writing group that meets once a week. We write from prompts for an hour or two and this has led to some short pieces that got published. I pick one day per week where I go to a coffee shop or library and I write or edit pieces in progress. I am self-employed, so this allows me some flexibility in managing my time, but protecting time for writing is always a challenge.

RR: Are there any writers who have most influenced your work, and how so?

MA: When I was a young boy, my dad would take me to the local airport on a quiet Sunday afternoon and we would watch the planes landing and taking off. When I got to high school, I had read most of the aviation stories by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, and scenes from those stories have stayed ever since. More recently, I rediscovered Hemingway, especially A Moveable Feast, which I have read several times. I read a selection of European authors, especially the New York Review Books translations. My wife is Irish, so we visit Ireland every other year, which has given me the chance to discover some of the current Irish authors such as Claire Keegan and Sally Rooney.