Pandatopia: a novel with a critical commentary, TEOTWAWKI

Pandatopia: a novel with a critical commentary, TEOTWAWKI comprises a novel of my own creation, alongside a commentary that reflects on aspects of the creative process and aims to contextualise my work within the genre of Science Fiction. Pandatopia is set in a world where half the global population have been deliberately Changed into panda people by a gene-altering virus. Now normal unchanged humans are adapting to life alongside their super intelligent pandafied neighbours, often living as second-class citizens in a world now being shaped by panda-kind. The novel follows the journey of Megan – a panda person who began life not as a human, but as a giant panda – as she attempts to defend the remnants of humanity from an imminent threat. Megan has uncovered a plot to eradicate the remaining unchanged humans from the world, and believes that her own genetic material is key to the plotters’ machinations. She sets out to find others like her, Changed giant pandas who can take the form of bear or biped at will, in order to prevent them – and their DNA – from falling into the wrong hands. One of these beings is her brother, Alpha, who has since become the new Emperor of China. Megan is accompanied by an unchanged human named Jen and a panda person called James. She is also aided by a magpie known as “the Dave”, leader of his murder, who begins building a global empire of his own as they progress around the world. TEOTWAWKI explores the central themes of the novel alongside the work of contemporary SF writers and critical theorists. It also considers aspects of the process of composition, covering some of the events and experiences that inspired and informed the development of my novum, to frame the artistic nature of the primary text.