I like to think of myself as an optimist though I think I have an uncanny knack for coming up with the worst-case scenarios (which served me well as a lawyer). My characters could focus only on getting through the life they’ve been given or they can choose to take advantage of the calm moments. To me this is what life is about - it’s sort of the phrase you always hear that life isn’t about the destination but the journey. Cormac McCarthy’s THE ROAD and other post-apocalyptic novels), there is the light of hope in your books – can you tell us why you choose this path for your stories? Are you an optimist?Ĭarrie: I’m glad you see the hope in my stories because to me it’s definitely there! I think that since the dawn of time people have had to struggle to survive and carve out a place in the world but even in the most daunting of circumstances, they find time for love, friendship, companionship. The Book Smugglers: There are some striking themes in THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH and THE DEAD-TOSSED WAVES – the loss (and restriction) of knowledge, fear of the known and unknown, and in the midst of this oppressing fear, love and the will to survive. The zombie apocalypse is something that the world wouldn’t recover from quickly and I really enjoy pondering the question of what you do when everything you’ve ever known so radically changes? I’ve always been fascinated by books like Hatchet or movies like Alive. This is something that I think we all wonder about at some point - the idea of why am I here, what do I contribute to those around me, what will I do with my life?Īs for why I write about humans in a zombie-plagued world, I think I’ve just always been fascinated by the idea of survival and the extremes people will go through to stay alive. In my stories I think the zombie often represents existence for existence sake - the idea of plodding through time for no other reason than to occupy space. To you, what does the zombie represent? Why do you write about humans living in a zombie-plagued world?Ĭarrie: Wow, great question! I think the zombie can represent so many things: the inevitable and inescapable march of death, fear of the future, nihilism, uncertainty about the world. Some authors and films use zombies for the obvious schlock, horror and gore…but some authors, like yourself, use the zombie story as an insightful critique of human nature. Romero’s NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, zombies have been an iconic “monster” in popular culture. The Book Smugglers: Ever since delighting and terrifying mainstream audiences vis-a-vis George A. Without further ado, we give you the awesome Carrie! We are proud to have the incredibly talented Carrie Ryan over for a chat about her book, and to talk about her own favorite zombie books/comics/movies. These are words that describe Carrie Ryan’s work – and The Dead-Tossed Waves is no exception.

You can check out the first stop on the tour over at Cynsations and her interview with Carrie yesterday. Today marks the second stop on the official Blog Tour for author Carrie Ryan’s newest release, The Dead-Tossed Waves – book 2 in her planned trilogy documenting a world ravaged by the zombie apocalypse.

Born into the waves blogspot