Hello everyone, and welcome back to the mini blog hop celebrating the release of All the King’s Men, happening tomorrow! I’m glad you could join me today to talk about cyberpunk stories and romance.

My novel is a cyberpunk science fiction romance. I know, it seems like those genres might be at odds with each other, but I wanted to prove that they’re really not.

Science fiction that is cyberpunk usually takes place in cyberspace, a reality of the mind that is connected to other minds or has a theme of technologically enhanced humans. Cyberpunk also usually has a theme of dystopia, in which darker themes are explored, such as government oppression, and what makes a person human. Some other examples of cyberpunk are the movie The Matrix, the novel Neuromancer by William Gibson, the anime Ghost in the Shell and the TV show Dark Angel.

All the King’s Men takes place in the mindnet world of the Cerebrum, a place much like the internet. A person projects their own idea of what they look like using the power of their mind, and they can travel the Cerebrum with a simple thought.

My main character, Fox, describes the Cerebrum this way:

Some said that traversing the Cerebrum looked different to everyone, and that made sense to Fox. Every individual who linked into the mindnet thought differently. To him, it looked blue, with bright points of light and wispy interconnecting trails of mist. Apparently, psychologists could tell what type of person you were by the way you described it, but he couldn’t understand how his psyche could be interpreted like that. Then again, he was literally looking at his own thought process, so maybe what they said was true.

Cyberpunk can be a very dark genre, so I think it’s important to introduce the theme of love and romance. Sometimes, I think that gritty realism goes too far, and leaves the reader with nothing to uplift them.

Fox and Seven both have a hard journey ahead of them, and it seems like it would be impossible for love to blossom in a place like the Cerebrum. But somehow, they struggle their way towards it.

Thanks for coming to the blog hop and reading about the Cerebrum! Don’t forget to visit the next stop on my blog hop at Hearts on Fire!

Fox is a mindnet hacker, and works for the mysterious man known only as King. He spends his time uncovering dangerous secrets and releasing them to the public.

But those who cause trouble are bound to attract it, and despite their precautions King is taken prisoner by an unknown government. And if Fox is going to save him, he’s going to need help—help that comes from the very last place he expected to find it.

Alex Powell is an avid writer and reader of sci-fi and fantasy, but on occasion branches into other genres to keep things interesting. Alex is a genderqueer writer from the wilds of northern Canada who loves exploring other peoples and cultures. Alex is a recent graduate of UNBC with a BA in English, and as a result has an unhealthy obsession with Victorian Gothic literature. Alex has been writing from an early age, but is happy to keep learning to improve on their writing skills. Feedback and comments as well as any questions are appreciated! You can reach Alex at aa.powell.author@gmail.com and at their website alexpowellauthor.com.

Comment below for a chance to win a $20 gift certificate to the Less Than Three book market and a signed print copy of All the King’s Men! The draw will take place on July 31st. Please note that the draw includes all posts on the blog hop!

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