Authors To Watch: Interview with Deven Greene Author of UNNATURAL #authorstowatch #interview

 

 

Fiction writer Deven Greene lives in the San Francisco Bay area. Ever since childhood, Deven has been interested in science.  After working as a biochemist, she went back to school and became a pathologist.  When writing fiction, the author usually incorporates elements of medicine or science. Deven has penned several short stories. Unnatural is the first novel the author has published.

WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:

Website: https://www.devengreene.com

Facebook: https://facebook.com/devengreeneauthor

Title: UNNATURAL (Erica Rosen MD Trilogy Book 1)
Author: Deven Greene
Publisher: Black Rose Writing
Pages: 292
Genre: Medical Thriller

BOOK BLURB:

Dr. Erica Rosen is perplexed when she sees a young Chinese girl with blue eyes in her San Francisco pediatrics clinic. The girl’s mother, Ting, is secretive, and Erica suspects she has entered the country illegally. Later, Erica encounters Ting’s son and discovers he has an unusual mutation. Erica learns that Ting’s children underwent embryonic stem cell gene editing as part of a secret Chinese government-run program.

The Chinese government wants to murder Ting’s son to prevent others from learning about his unusual mutation and the secret gene-editing program. At Ting’s urging, Erica heads to China to expose the program and rescue the infant Ting was forced to leave behind, all while attempting to evade the watchful eye of the Chinese government.

PRAISE

A compelling and richly woven story, perfect for those looking for their new favorite thriller! 

The UC San Francisco pediatric clinic is a lively and bustling facility where every sort of injury and infirmity has been seen, diagnosed and treated. That is, until the day a Chinese migrant named Ting brings her daughter in for an evaluation. The striking girl is truly an anomaly, bearing genetically impossible bright blue eyes. Dr. Erica Rosen presses Ting for information, but Ting is paranoid, evasive and overly protective of her family’s privacy. Things become more puzzling when Ting ends up in the ER with a wounded young son and insists that someone is trying to kill the boy. Shocking test results, a second attempt on the boy’s life and a missing phlebotomist are just the beginning of a riveting tale of government conspiracy, medical mystery and dangerous close-calls.

Unnatural is a flawlessly written medical thriller that focuses on a Chinese mother who will sacrifice everything to save her children. Erica is a bold protagonist who follows her instincts to some amazing discoveries. The narrative is driven by intelligent dialogue and a clever, yet heinous, plot. The cultural aspects between Ting and Erica feel authentic and the technical medical language is just complicated enough to feel genuine without becoming difficult to read. Deven Greene has created a truly gripping international thriller with just the right amount of humanity and compassion.  Unnatural, the first in the Erica Rosen MD Trilogy, is a compelling and richly woven story, perfect for those looking for a new favorite thriller!

–Indies Today 

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We welcome you to My Bookish Pleasures! Can you tell us how you got started writing fiction?

I enjoyed writing fiction when I was in grade school. As I became more involved in other things, I put that interest aside. I often thought about authoring a novel but considered it too much of a challenge. I always told myself I didn’t have the time. Finally, the day came when I realized that no one really has the time. You have to make the time. That’s when I began.

Describe your writing process. Do you plot or write by the seat of your pants? When and where do you write?

Although I’m fairly new to the writing process, I have developed a general approach. First comes the concept, then comes the research, then the plot, then the characters. I have an outline in my mind about what will happen when. Once I sit down and start banging away at my computer, I realize that I need to research a detail here, tweak an event there, and add something more interesting at other points. Trying to nail down all the particulars ahead of time doesn’t work for me, but I do need a general plotline and ending in mind. I don’t consider myself a “pantser” (someone who writes by the seat of one’s pants) but there is an element of spontaneous writing in my work.

I prefer to write at home, in my study. I have the perfect set-up—a PC with a very large monitor so I can have multiple windows open at once. This is helpful, as I often need to research things as I write. If I’m traveling, I use my laptop but generally limit that to editing or writing short stories.

I tend to write during the daytime, but if I feel rushed or obsessed, I sometimes write well into the night.

Can you tell us about your most recent release?

Unnatural, Erica Rosen MD Trilogy Book 1 was recently published. The main character, Erica Rosen, is a young San Francisco pediatrician who sees a five-year-old girl brought into the clinic to have her kindergarten physical form filled out. The child and her mother are Chinese, and Erica is struck by the fact that the girl has blue eyes. Erica discovers the mystery behind those eyes—the girl was the product of human embryonic stem cell gene editing secretly performed by the Chinese government. A series of events sends Erica to China to find the infant the mother was forced to leave behind, and expose the Chinese genetic engineering program to the world so it will be shut down.

How did you get the idea for the book?

I was forced to write this book the day I started, around two years ago. No, I wasn’t held at gunpoint, but the idea came in a flash, and I couldn’t suppress it. I was getting ready to start another novel, one I’d been thinking about for some time, when I felt compelled to write this novel, Unnatural, Eric Rosen MD Trilogy Book 1, about human embryonic stem cell gene editing. Being interested in all things science, especially medically-related science, I’d read quite a bit about CRISPR/Cas9 and genetic engineering, a real game-changer in medical research. I loved the idea of introducing the effect of a genetic change by way of a Chinese girl with blue eyes.  To use that in a thriller, I needed to think of a nefarious use for this technology. The novel took off from there.

Of all your characters, which one is your favorite? Why?

Ouch! That’s a tough question. Why don’t you just ask me which one of my kids is my favorite? Actually, I love all my characters—the good ones, that is. Since I know Erica Rosen, the protagonist, the best, I’ll choose her as my favorite. I like her because she’s smart and principled. If she’d asked me, however, I would have advised her not to go to China to right the wrongs being done, as it was a very risky proposition. Luckily, she didn’t ask me.

What was the most challenging aspect of writing your book?

There were many challenges for me. The hardest part was trying to get just the right amount of scientific detail in the book. I’m not sure I arrived at the perfect balance of offering accurate scientific information and detail on the one hand, and keeping the narrative understandable and interesting on the other. I would suggest that authors dealing with this dilemma have laypeople read their material and see how they react. Use that information to decide how much detail to leave in or take out.

What projects are you currently working on?

I am working on Unwitting, Book 2 of the Erica Rosen MD Trilogy. The main characters introduced in Book 1 are involved, but Erica finds herself at the center of a new problem. This novel is actually the one I was planning to write when I was side-tracked by genetic engineering, the central theme of Book 1. Unwitting will be published in October 2021. I am also working on Book 3 of the series but don’t have a title yet.

What advice would you offer to new or aspiring fiction authors?

Learn techniques for novel writing. I advise new (and seasoned) writers to read books, attend lectures and take courses on writing. However, that shouldn’t get in the way of writing. Don’t be afraid you don’t know enough. Just do it.