may still do it.
X: How much does religious fundamentalism or Mormonism play a
role in Virtual Light, particularly that scene in the tattoo
parlour, "yours is Mormon, because you *did* ask for coffee"?
WG: Well, Mormons can't drink coffee. I just stuck it in that one
scene. I think fundamentalists are a big problem, it doesn't
matter what kind of fundamentalist it is, as long as you're
dealing with anybody who thinks they've already been given the
bottom line, you're not going to be able to do much in terms of
constructive social action or criticism. For Virtual Light I
basically just went after Christians because I find them a
singular pain in the butt, an easy target and always deserving.
X: You went to Singapore recently. How did that trip affect you?
WG: It made me feel like I was on the right track (laughs).
Singapore is a terrific destination for a science fiction writer
- what it really is like, it's sort of like you've arrived at the
world that Robert Heinlein was predicting in 1958 and somebody
was foolhardy enough to build it and then you go and check it out
and it sucks! There's no slack or alternative culture - all they
do is shop.
X: How do you feel about the Middle-East peace agreement, and
peace in general?
WG: Yeah, I'm all for it. I hope they can get somewhere with it -
at least they're trying. I just can't get it up anymore for any
kind of ethnic separatism. I don't think that's the way to go.
Everything breaks down eventually, you keep fighting and the
whole structure collapses and you're left with something like
Somalia. I'm a peace-nik of the first water.
X: What does the future hold for you?
WG: I don't want to write anymore screenplays, at least not
contract work for Hollywood. I'd love to get Johnny Mnemonic made
with my script but if it doesn't work out I don't want to mess
around with it. It takes up too much of my time - I make more
money writing books than writing unproduced screenplays, and
people get to read them! I get the feedback from the audience,
it's much more appealing - words in a row.
X: Thanks a lot for this.
WG: Thank you for the opportunity to have the coffee.
