William Orwell Steele from May Day
Tell me a little
about yourself and the world you live in.
(If the character and story is our world, tell me about the neighborhood
or city, town, country etc)
Well, I think everyone knows I have the high honor and
distinct privilege to be the 45th President of the United States. I live in
Washington, DC, of course. Our nation’s capitol is a world apart from ordinary
Americans’ lives. It’s a kind of hothouse environment all its own. I think
that’s unfortunate in a very real way, because we who live and work inside the
Beltway tend not to be as aware of how our decisions truly affect the way our
constituents live as we really should be. I’ve tried hard to change that, but
you’d be surprised at how little power the President actually wields on a
day-to-day basis.
Of course that’s all changed since I was forced to declare
martial law, following the May Day attack.
Tell us your most
closely guarded secret?
I’m afraid there’s quite a number of closely-guarded secrets
I’m not at liberty to reveal. I suppose, though, it’s fair to say most people
would be surprised to learn how often I question whether I have the wisdom I’ll
need to guide our nation through these, its darkest days, and the strength to
keep making the hard decisions that only the President can make. But that’s
what the job requires, and I accepted this burden when I took the oath of
office.
Tell us about your
single most important memory. What was
it and how does it affect you now?
Oh, God. It’s that afternoon in Cleveland, when my wife Julia
died in my arms, struck down by an assassin’s bullet meant for me. It’s going
on four years since it happened, and it’s as clear to me and as terrible now as
it was on September 7, 2016. I think of it every day …
I apologize. Could I have a moment to compose myself before
we continue?
What type of person
are you? Are you a hero or do you shy
away from conflict?
I certainly wouldn’t call myself a hero. On the other hand,
if you shy away from conflict, you’re not very well-suited for a life in
politics – especially at the national level.
Let me just say that I embarked on a political career with
the hope that I could make a positive difference in the course this country is
charting towards the future … and in the lives of ordinary Americans. Those
goals have been much harder to achieve than I ever imagined, but I’ve tried my
best to keep them in mind, even when the administrative responsibilities of the
position pile up to the point that they block the view.
As the old saying goes, “Sometimes it’s hard to remember you
started out to drain the swamp, when you’re up to your hips in alligators!”
Do you have any
hobbies, any special talents?
Being Chief Executive leaves me very little time for
hobbies, I’m afraid. I do try to spend at least a little time every day with my
Great Dane, Duke. As for talents and interests, as you probably know, my
degrees are in history and political science, and I think a knowledge of both
of those subjects has stood me in good stead as President. My study of world
history, in particular, is often helpful. Saroyan observed, “Those who forget
the lessons of history are condemned to repeat them,” and I think there’s some
truth in that.
And in that line,
what would be your ideal day?
I remember a particular Saturday at Camp David a couple of
years ago. It was in early October, as I recall. The leaves were turning, the
weather was beautiful, and Duke and I spent a couple of hours just hiking and
enjoying each other’s company. It was only the two of us – and my Secret
Service detail, naturally – and, for a while at least, I was able to forget the
demands of the Presidency and enjoy a simple walk in the country.
Given the current situation, I don’t expect another such
experience any time soon, so I treasure that one all the more.
Do you have anyone
close to you, any family or friends of interest?
Well, there’s Andy Philips, my college roommate, who’s now
White House Chief of Staff. We talk almost every evening – although our
conversations these days are more a continuation of the workday than they used
to be. And Marcus Clement, my personal physician has been a friend for more
years than I care to count.
As for family, my parents are both dead, and my daughter
Artemis is in graduate school at Berkeley, so we rarely see one another any
more. And Julia’s parents … well, I think seeing me is just too painful for
them, for obvious reasons. I still care about them, though. We exchange
Christmas and birthday cards.
What is your most
prized possession?
My daughter Artemis – that is, if a child who’s 23 years
old, and an adult in her own right can be referred to as a possession. It’s no
secret that relations between us have been … strained … since her mother’s
murder. I know she blames me for that. Truth to tell, I sometimes blame myself.
I can’t help but think that, if I’d chosen to stay in Colorado and run for
another term as Governor, Julia would probably still be alive. But, of course, the
past is fixed. All we can do is try to remember its lessons, as we look to the
future.
What initially
spurred your actions in this story. Obviously
it had to start somewhere for you, give us an idea of where that starting point
is and where it all started.
The nuclear terrorist attack on Lower Manhattan at noon on
May 1st, 2020 changed my life as much as it changed every other American’s –
possibly more. I was in the middle of a speech to the Commonwealth Club in San
Francisco when the head of my Secret Service detail gave me the news. Up until
then, I’d been focused on my upcoming re-election campaign, and on the upcoming
summit meeting I had scheduled with Vladimir Kropotkin, the President of the
Russian Federation. That all changed in a single heartbeat. On the advice of
Arleigh Solomon, my National Security Adviser, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, I
declared martial law on my way back to Washington, and it’s been very like the
world’s worst roller-coaster ride ever since.
How do you envision
your future?
Frankly, at the moment, I’m too focused on trying to salvage
this country’s future to worry about my own. If the people of the United States
re-elect me as President this fall, I’ll do everything in my power to justify
their faith in me, but, right now, I just can’t be concerned about that. With
the ongoing effort to rescue as many Americans from the Fallout Zone as
possible, with the economy in shambles, with terror and hate groups coming out
of the woodwork, and with the ongoing work of finding and bringing to justice
the perpetrators of the May Day attack, I have neither the time nor the energy
to worry about what the future holds for me, personally.
Tell us where we can
read more about you?
May Day – Book One
of American Sulla begins with the
detonation of a 20-kiloton nuclear weapon on the 63rd floor of 1 World Trade
Center. A million people die. Millions more flee from a gigantic, deadly cloud
of fallout.
The crisis has only begun.
President William Orwell Steele and his cabinet labor to
cope with the aftermath of an unprecedented terrorist attack, while a host of
ordinary Americans struggle merely to survive in a world where everything has
changed. From the corridors of power to the squalor of refugee camps, from
world capitols to the lawless frontiers of Pakistan, from economic collapse to
armed rebellion, the impact of the May Day attack swiftly spreads to every
aspect of society and every corner of the globe..
War – Book Two of American Sulla chronicles the following six
months, as President Steele battles militia uprisings, a hopelessly-partisan,
deadlocked Congress, and a collapsing world economy, while the military
prepares for war with Pakistan. As the Presidential election looms ever closer,
so does Steele’s world-shaking October surprise.
Revolution – Book
Three of American Sulla takes us to
the end of Steele’s second term as President, and the cascade of terrible and
unexpected consequences of his daughter’s return to her father’s arms.
Author: Thom
Stark has been a professional writer – which he defines as “one who gets paid
for it” – since 1995, when his @internet column began appearing in the pages of
LAN Times Magazine. He is probably best-known as a columnist and feature writer
for the late, great Boardwatch Magazine. He maintains an archive of past
columns and articles on his website at www.starkrealities.com.
Mr. Stark currently lives in Chillicothe, Ohio, with his
wife Judy and their lovable mutts Wally and Watson, where he is hard at work on
War – Book Two of American Sulla.
Author's blog or
website: www.starkrealities.com
American Sulla is
a big, big novel (May Day alone is more than 147,000 words long). As you might
expect, it has a gigantic cast, and William Orwell Steele’s is only one of many
stories that make up the narrative. In addition to the political thriller
component, the plot includes survival adventures, police procedurals, spy
stories, tales of aerial, ground, and sea combat, and romances, inspiring
heroes, the blackest of villains, and a host of ordinary people, simply trying
to survive. It will keep you on the edge of your chair, make you think, break
your heart, and capture you like no other novel you’ve encountered.
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