AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT: JOEL SHULKIN
INTERVIEW WITH JOEL SHULKIN
Joel Shulkin, MD, is the author of Adverse Effects and Toxic Effects, the first two novels in the Memory Thieves series, and he has penned award-winning short stories and poetry. A pediatrician and United States Air Force veteran with a Masters in public health, Joel lives in Florida with his wife and two daughters.
What was the first story you wrote and how was the experience?
In high school we were asked to write a short story. I wrote about a boy searching for his creator, risking everything in his quest, only to find no answers and forced to start all over again. I thought it was terrible, but my English teacher absolutely loved it. I've since rewritten it into a longer story, which won an Honorable Mention in the Writers of the Future contest, though I've yet to find a good home for publishing it.
Did your medical profession inspire your writing entirely or did you always knew you would be a writer whatever profession you chose?
I always enjoyed writing, and another English teacher in middle school was certain I would be a playwright. But after college I set writing aside to pursue medicine, and didn't really sit down to write again until after I finished my military service and had a year off before starting fellowship in developmental medicine. At first, I was writing fantasy/sci-fi, but then after meeting Michael Palmer and speaking to Tess Gerritsen, I started to find ways to incorporate my medical training and experience into my writing.
As a real medical doctor writing medical fiction, do you find being realistic with your scenes getting in the way of the creativity?
It does interrupt the writing flow a bit, as even though I'm a doctor I often stop to fact check and make sure I have medical details correct, especially when it comes to more recent discoveries or inventions. But since my stories are often speculative about future biotechnology, I have a fair bit of leeway for creative license. My issue is more cutting back on jargon and detailed medical descriptions.
If you were to meet your characters someday, which of them is likely to pick a fight with you and why?
Probably the mastermind Quinn because he's a cold-hearted SOB.
Have you written any book loosely or entirely based on any real life medical event or patient? If yes, was it any difficult or easier?
Not medical events, and certainly not patients. But one of the opening scenes of Adverse Effects is based on real life in a way. The idea for the book sprang from a bus ride, when a stranger decided, out of a literally empty bus, decided to sit directly behind me. Creepy.
How difficult was it for you to find time to write Adverse Effects in the midst of your medical practice?
I started writing the book while I was still in fellowship, and there were afternoons when I had lots of free time. Finding time to revise and rewrite later became more challenging, but I made a goal of writing 500 words each morning around 5 am, before anyone else wakes up. That regimen has helped me write 4 more books in the past 2 years.
How would you advise other professionals who wish to explore their specialization in writing fiction?
I was initially worried about "writing what I know", because as a developmental pediatrician, my days aren't filled with substrate for writing suspenseful thrillers. The advice I received from Tess Gerristen was not to write only what you know, but what you want to read. It helps to use your professional knowledge and experience to flesh out your books, but don't limit yourself to your profession. I've recently started writing a psychological thriller that doesn't involve medicine. And I've had to learn a lot about criminal investigators to make those scenes more realistic. I have a video for the International Thriller Writers organization where you can learn more about writing medical thrillers.
What's your current work in progress and when will it be ready for readers?
I'm currently revising a medical thriller called Spontaneous Remission, about a woman with end-stage scleroderma who suddenly starts improving for no apparent reason. It should go out on submission later this year. And Toxic Effects, Book 2 in the Memory Thieves, goes on sale Sept 20, 2022 (but is up for preorder now).
Find Books by Joel Shulkin Here.