Case Study in Empathy
A mix of speculative, dystopian, and hard psychological science-fiction. Written to challenge, entertain, and be fair. Not another “safe” modern dystopia preaching to the choir.
Be the first to read! The novel is set to release this September and is not yet available to the general public. But you can get the first few chapters for free (no catch, except you might want to read more).
Why is it worth my time?
Before I try to convince you that you should read my book, let me tell you how it came to be. In 2017, I moved to the U.S. from Russia to get my Ph.D. in Cognitive Science. From day one, I was so deeply impressed by the Land of the Free that I couldn’t help but write a dystopian novel.
That said, given my upbringing, I am allergic to propaganda. I’d never spend thousands of hours to write a thinly veiled metaphor for how bad some political party or other is.
What I wanted to write is an engaging, honest story about what I saw as the root of the strife around me: empathy and whether there can be too much of it.
Here’s my promise to you as a reader. No matter what you think the answer should be, you will find an entertaining story, things you agree with, things you disagree with, and no ham-fisted final answer from me, the author.
Will you be able to guess what my own views are on the topic? Maybe. I am only human. But I won’t try to convince you of my view, just like I’m not trying to convince you to read my book. Or wait a second…
In any case, here’s the blurb:
What if Empathy Were Absolute?
William is a mental health specialist in a world of absolute empathy. It’s a perilous job: one slip-up, and an escalating empathy feedback loop could get both him and his client killed. Every day, William faces the worst consequences of the hyperempathy virus release and loathes the world as it is.
His life is upended when a new client shares a way to free oneself from hyperempathy once and for all.
What should he do with this knowledge?
If it sounds intriguing, it’s not to late to scroll up and read the sample chapters 🙂