Here are a few questions that Voicu has answered about himself (author has supplied the questions, as well)
Hi! Would you tell us a little bit
about yourself? J
I was born in 1978 in Arad, a small city in western
Transylvania, Romania, in Eastern Europe. My father is a journalist and an
author with tens of books of non-fiction and poetry published under his name.
In 2002, I moved to Thailand to work as a secondary school
teacher and continue my graduate studies. Now I live with my Thai wife in
Bangkok where I teach Language Arts and Social Studies at an international
school.
Do you have anything you would like to
say to your readers?
I would like to quote what Morpheus told Neo in The Matrix, “Neo, sooner or later you’re going to
realize, just as I did, that there’s a difference between knowing the path, and
walking the path.” Regardless of your dreams and ambitions, just wanting to do
something is not enough. Getting down to doing it and facing the challenges
life puts in your path is a journey we all have to take in order to become
successful.
Can you tell us, in your own words not
the book description, a little about your book?
The book that I’m virtually touring now is an
intertextual study of the film The
Matrix and the books Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and
Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll. The initial research for
the book was done as part of my two-year master’s degree studies in Bangkok. I have probably seen The
Matrix trilogy over one hundred times and having the book in my hands
has brought my longtime obsession with The Matrix and
the Alice Books to a satisfactory conclusion. Now it’s time
for the world to read it and dive down the rabbit hole and explore a world
where the boundary between dreams and reality is blurred by some of the most
remarkable and memorable fictional characters ever to appear on the pages of a
book and on the screen of a TV.
If you are self-published, why did you
decide to take this route of publishing?
My very first book, The Spirit of Medieval Japan, appeared under the publishing wing of
an NGO, while dozens of my non-fiction articles and short stories were published
in various academic journals and anthologies. Apart from public exposure, there
was no monetary benefit. Among the books I have chosen to self-publish, The Matrix and the Alice Books has been the most successful financially. As a writer,
to be paid for your writing is a huge reward. Now that one can read an e-book
on an increasing score of gadgets, I think self-publishing is a positive way
for writers to make their work available to a very large section of the public.
And if the writer did their job properly, then they might even see a return on
their investment.
Is there an author or book that
influenced you or your writing in any way growing up or as an adult?
The world Lewis Carroll created in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass had a great
impact on me and, as a child, I often found myself slipping down my own rabbit
hole under a pillow-made
castle, joining Alice in her wonderful adventures. Jules Verne’s adventure novels,
especially Around the World in 80 Days,
instilled in me a strong desire to see the world and Verne’s great explorers,
men of arms and scientists, soon became my heroes in whose footsteps I hoped to
follow. Now, in my mid-30s, after having published a postgraduate study about
the Alice books and having made a new life for myself in Asia, miles away from
my home country in Eastern Europe, I do believe that the books I grew up with
have made me the man I am today.
Are you reading anything interesting
at the moment? If so, what is it?
I’ve recently bought The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell, a novel
set in 18th century Japan. I had discovered this British author via Cloud Atlas, a 2012 science fiction film
directed and produced by Lana and Andy Wachowski, an adaptation of Mitchell’s
2004 novel of the same title. As a fan of The
Matrix, I follow closely the Wachowskis and have always found their choice
of topics to suit my taste too. This also proved to be true in the case of
David Mitchell’s works.
Favorite color?
My favourite colour is blue, the kind of dark blue you
get in the “real world” of The Matrix
where the characters are unplugged. I am also attracted by the shade of green
distinctive to a monochrome monitor, something I can relate to as I am old
enough to remember what the first IBM computers looked like. Green is a colour
that has great significance in The Matrix
as it symbolizes the world of the machines. The Matrix digital rain, with its
falling green code representing the virtual reality of the Matrix, is also on
the background of the cover of my intertextual study The Matrix and the Alice Books.
Do you have any upcoming appearances
that you would like to share with us?
For this academic school year (2013/2014), I have been
invited to a few international schools in Bangkok to speak to their students
about The Ironman. A Play, a book for
children I wrote and published in 2009.
Can we expect more novels from you in
2013-2014?
For 2013, I’m planning to release the following
titles: Riding the Cylinder, three science fiction short stories set in Thailand; Taking the
Seas, a book of adventure stories for the young ones; Angelee, a
collection of short stories and, of course, my pièce de résistance would clearly be The Buddha Head, a suspense thriller set in Ayutthaya in
Thailand.
At the same time, I am at
various stages of completion with three other books of non-fiction which have
the working titles of Thailand from A to Z: Sports, Activities, and Martial
Arts; 10 Destinations In &
Out of Bangkok, and Archery from A to Z. Also, I have started work on The
Ancient Sword, the
second novel in “The Ayutthaya Trilogy,” which started with The
Buddha Head.
What do you do when you are not
writing?
In recent years, my life has been a struggle to manage
my time in such a way that I allocate enough time for my writing, but also my
two other passions, archery and aikido. As these are more than just two ways to
relax, I do them regularly even on the occasions when I feel tired from a day
teaching at work or typing away on my laptop.
To relax in the real sense of the word, I sort and
catalogue my collection of coins, banknotes, postcards, and pins which I have
amassed during my travels in Asia.
The Matrix and the Alice Books
by Voicu
Mihnea Simandan
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
The
Matrix and the Alice Books presents aspects of intertextuality in three primary
sources: the script of the motion picture The Matrix written by directors Andy
and Larry Wachowski, and the books Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through
the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll.
Intertextuality
is a set of relations with other texts, which can include direct quotations,
allusions, literary conventions, imitation, parody and unconscious sources
amongst others. In The Matrix there are few explicit references to Lewis
Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass.
This
book by Voicu Mihnea Simandan presents both the explicit references and the
less direct ones, giving evidence from primary and secondary sources. In doing
so, it makes use of a literary construction developed from Gérard Genette’s
structuralist theory of transtextuality as a framework to present how a web of
intertextual relationships is clearly formed between the Alice books and The
Matrix.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT:
“In The
Matrix, Neo comes from the Oracle a bit disappointed with what he had just
found out, but Morpheus tries to show him the way: “Neo, sooner or later, you’re
going to realize, just as I did, that there’s a difference between knowing the
path... and walking the path...” Alice wakes up only when she is ready to face
the real world, just as Neo has to understand that, in order to defeat the
agents and end the war, he has to face his demons and take control of his own
life. […]
In The
Matrix, Cypher confesses his regrets to Neo over getting unplugged. “You know,
I know what you’re thinking, because right now I’m thinking the same thing.
Actually, I’ve been thinking it ever since I got here... Why, oh why, didn’t I
take... the blue pill?” The repeated phrase shows hesitation and the intensity
of Cypher’s emotions. Neither Alice nor Cypher understand the new world they
have entered, and both have second thoughts about remaining there. But, while
Alice tries to unlock the secret of wonderland and eventually is able to
control it, just as Neo does in the end, Cypher betrays his crew members in a
desperate move to be reinserted into the Matrix.
Despite an
ever-changing environment and logic, both Alice and Neo continue to deal with
the challenges that beset them. No prior experience in wonderland or the Matrix
can teach them about what to expect in their next undertaking; nevertheless
they manage to get through each encounter, ready to face new situations.”
.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Voicu Mihnea
Simandan is a Romanian writer and freelance journalist who was born in 1978 in
Arad, a small city in Transylvania. He has published short stories, non-fiction,
and books for children. He has been calling Thailand home since 2002 and he has
been a member of the Bangkok Writers' Guild since 2009 and a member of AP
Writers since 2012. He is now teaching Language Arts and Social Studies at an
international school in Bangkok. His upcoming debut novel, The Buddha Head, a
suspense thriller set in Thailand, is scheduled for publication in late 2013.
He loves archery, martial arts and travelling.
Author links:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vmsimandan
Twitter: https://twitter.com/vmsimandan
Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11078279-the-matrix-and-the-alice-books
Blog:
http://www.simandan.com/
Website: http://vm.simandan.com/
Buy links:
Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Matrix-Alice-Books-Mihnea-Simandan/dp/0557258073
Amazon.co.uk:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Matrix-Alice-Books-Mihnea-Simandan/dp/0557258073
Kindle
US:
http://www.amazon.com/Matrix-Alice-Books-ebook/dp/B00C696N9U/
Kindle
UK:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Matrix-Alice-Books-ebook/dp/B00C696N9U/
Thank you for hosting today.
ReplyDeleteWho do you see as the audience for The Matrix and the Alice Books? Is it more geared for libraries and scholars/academics?
ReplyDeletecatherinelee100 at gmail dot com
Thanks for the excerpt and the chance to win!
ReplyDeletenatasha_donohoo_8 at hotmail dot com
Thanks for this great giveaway!
ReplyDelete