“I wrote it in 2021,” he recalled. “I was supposed to be writing another book, and I just couldn’t get it together. There was so much going on and it was difficult to focus. It was a dark and gritty political thriller, and in 2020 it was too much.”
Instead, Scalzi wrote about what was going on in the world. Kind of. The book is about a food app delivery driver during the pandemic who is unhappy, so after running into a friend, he gets another job. But it’s not a normal job.
“Kaiju means strange animal or monster. Like Godzilla and Mothra,” he said. “So, this idea just downloaded into my brain. What if a massive creature is just trying to live its life, but they need human intervention to help them? That’s what the researchers and scientists do.”
Scalzi wrote the book in five weeks. He believes people are drawn to the book because it’s grounded in reality at first, but then the reader gets thrown into a wild world that is unknown to them. Scalzi said that’s what his “MO” normally is.
“It’s the little novel that could,” he said. “I was trying to figure out what made this book on so many award lists, and it’s because we just came out of a rough time. Pandemic, political upheaval. The book reconnects people to having fun reading. Currently, people really want that. Fans say that it took them away from things. They needed escapism.”
The Ohioana Book Awards reception and ceremony takes place Thursday, Sept. 21 at 6 p.m. in the atrium in the historic Ohio Statehouse in Columbus. Scalzi will not be able to attend, but his daughter will accept the award on his behalf.
“I’m sad I can’t be there. I’ll be in Wichita on a book tour,” he said. “But (my daughter) is tremendous. She’s a great writer. It makes me proud to have (her) accept the award for me.”
Scalzi’s new book “Starter Villain” will hit stands in September. He said there will be many more books to come. Also, two of his books have been optioned for television barring that the Writers Guild of America strikes ends soon. For Scalzi, inspiration is everywhere.
“I simply like to write and the idea of not writing seems weird to me,” he said. “As far as it goes, everything is fodder for things to potentially write. My brain is an inspiration Thunderdome.”
Beyond writing, Scalzi also dabbles in music, mainly electronic. He also enjoys guitar, and he even used to be a drummer. However, one of his favorite things is going home to Bradford after a long book tour.
“I’m always asked how I got to Ohio,” he said. “My wife is the reason. She wanted to be close to family, and it turns out five acres of land in Ohio is real cheap. It’s a tiny, tiny town, especially since I went to school in L.A. and Chicago. The first couple months it was too quiet. Now, I love it. After a book tour, I don’t have to see anyone except my wife, daughter and the animals.”
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