-FREEDOM WRITER-
CYNTHIA ADINA KIRKWOOD
New York Times bestselling author Laxmi Hariharan interviews Cynthia Adina Kirkwood and writer Alex de Costa in London.
"The Author Show" interview on radio
​​Interview by author Jane Davis
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01
In Turn On, Tune Out, you write about British culture. Why?
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Angelica Morgan, the British protagonist, is from Malvern in the Midlands but is living in Long Beach, California, in the Southland. She is constantly editing her words and actions to suit the culture and filtering those of others through her developing American cultural antenna. Sometimes, she has to guess the meaning of what surrounds her. With the Stop, Look and Listen law, which requires four daily hours of computer screen-watching, she gets it wrong.
02
How did you find the title?
“Turn on, tune in, drop out,” was a 1960s counterculture phrase popularized by Timothy Leary. Thirty years later, Leary, who explored the use of LSD and psychedelic mushrooms to expand consciousness, became fascinated by computers, the Internet, and virtual reality. He said: “The PC is the LSD of the 1990s.” Ironically, in near-future California, the law mandates that computers constrict – not expand - hearts, minds and souls.
Therefore, the title became Turn On, Tune Out, where people turn on their computers, tune out the world, and shut down themselves.
03
Why should Turn On, Tune Out be your next read?
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If you find your life bombarded by information and noise, read about this musician’s challenge to quiet hers.
04
Why is Turn On, Tune Out important?
TURN ON, TUNE OUT is important because it’s asking people to be conscious of their use of computers and the Internet. Surely, something insidious happens to our own brain wiring when we spend hours on the Internet. Our minds are easily hijacked by words or images while on the Internet.