Q&A: A.G. Riddle, Author of ‘Labyrinth’

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Q&A: A.G. Riddle, Author of ‘Labyrinth’ — AG Riddle Labyrinth Author Interview.jpg

We chat with author A.G. Riddle about Labyrinth, which is a new mind-bending thriller: a group of strangers with tinnitus begins seeing numbers – numbers they soon realize are a code that will change the world.

Hi, A.G.! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?

I’m the author of fourteen sci-fi thrillers published over the last twelve years. I live in Raleigh, North Carolina with my wife, daughter, and son.

When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?

In college, I started an Internet company and did that for ten years. But reading science fiction remained my first love. At night, I looked forward to reading, and when my company was sold. I spent two and a half years writing my first novel. I loved writing, but I wasn’t sure if it would be a hobby or a second career until my first book came out, and my work began to find an audience.

Quick lightning round! Tell us:

The first book you ever remember reading: Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
The one that made you want to become an author: Hyperion by Dan Simmons
The one that you can’t stop thinking about: The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

**Your latest novel, Labyrinth, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?**

Strangers see [a] mysterious coded message

What can readers expect?

A thrilling mystery full of science and speculation about humanity’s future.

**Where did the inspiration for Labyrinth come from?**

Like so many of my novels, Labyrinth explores what humanity’s future might look like, especially a future in which virtual reality and artificial intelligence are joined together to create a new tool for entertainment and work that radically changes human life. The book starts out more simply, with a focus on the characters and the struggles they’re facing, but goes on to explore these larger themes.

Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?

One of the great rewards of writing Labyrinth was how the characters evolved and changed over time. This caused a lot of rewrites, but it made the process worth it. I would say that all the characters changed substantially, but in particular Alan and Warren and June. Toward the end of the book, there are passages that I particularly enjoyed writing, and I’ll have to leave it at that to avoid spoiling anything for prospective readers.

Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?

Labyrinth is a little over 200,000 words and nearly 800 pages in print. The book took nearly two years to write and required a lot of rewrites due to the characters evolving and certain opportunities in the plot coming up. Many of these were too good to pass up, so I made the decision to rewrite my outline and pursue those ideas. It was certainly a challenge spending that much time writing the book and balancing family life with two young kids, but I’m proud of the way the novel turned out and glad I did the work.