S11E12 Who Wants to Live Forever: Hanna Thomas Uose on love and life without death

“This drug feels incredibly likely. There are all sorts of mad men doing trials on themselves.  And they have not put any thought into the societal implications of it” ~Hanna Thomas Uose

AI is enabling rapid advancements in technology and drug discovery - unlike anything we’ve seen before. And with humankind’s obsession with longevity only deepening, some believe it’s only a matter of time before we have access to “live forever” drugs. 

But would eternal human life really be a good thing? This is the central premise of Hanna Thomas Uose’s debut novel, Who Wants to Live Forever. Throughout the book she explores the lives of soulmates Yuki and Sam, who both choose different paths when a miracle drug is released.

In an imagined world which could very well become reality, Hanna takes us on a journey through the morality of eternal life and questions of what it means to die.

In this episode, you will learn:

• How writing can help you grapple with problems you can’t seem to solve
• To consider world-building first, before thinking about creating your characters
• Why it pays to think outside of a Western perspective of the world

Find out more about Hanna here.

Your host is inkjockey founder Mark Heywood.

Behind The Spine is an inkjockey production, and the audio accompaniment to The Writing Salon. Sign up to the newsletter here.

Follow inkjockey on Substack here.

You can buy copies of our anthology series here. 

You can view the full transcript here.

Connect with the show:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/behindthespinepodcast/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BehindTheSpine

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BehindTheSpine

Website: www.behindthespine.co.uk