Thriller author JL Lycette is chatting with me today about her novel, The Algorithm Will See You Now.
JL is doing a virtual book tour with WOW! Women on Writing, The Muffin. Full tour listing is below. Feel free to visit other blogs!
Bio:
JL Lycette is a novelist, award-winning essayist, rural physician, wife, and mom. She has a degree in biochemistry from the University of San Francisco and attained her medical degree at the University of Washington. Mid-career, she discovered narrative medicine in her path back from physician burnout and has been writing ever since.
She is an alumna of the 2019 Pitch Wars Mentoring program. Her other published speculative fiction can be found in the anthology And If That Mockingbird Don’t Sing: Parenting Stories Gone Speculative (Alternating Current Press). The Algorithm Will See You Now (Black Rose Writing Press) is her first novel and is a 2023 Screencraft Cinematic Book Competition Finalist. Her second novel, The Committee Will Kill You Now (Black Rose Writing Press), will be published in November 2023.
Welcome, JL. Please tell us about your current release.
My debut novel, The Algorithm Will See You Now, is a speculative medical thriller set in near-future Seattle, where the implementation of artificial intelligence algorithms to guide—and limit—healthcare turns out to be, in the end, subject to its human creators’ flaws.
What inspired you to write this book?
In my day job, I’m a hematologist/oncologist (a specialist in blood and cancer medicine). During the 2010s, there was a lot of excitement about IBM’s Watson (a machine-learning AI) having a role in helping oncologists sort data and test results for our patients to help us define treatment. But in the mid-2010s, it failed spectacularly.
I had the idea for the novel about seven years ago when I read about some of the mistakes AI tools were making (like the misclassification of photos on Google). I immediately thought of the failed Watson Health project. My concern, which became my book’s premise, was what if we did one day achieve the goal of an advanced medical AI, but it turned out to be ultimately flawed at a very deep level? Mix that with the increasing corporatization of healthcare in the U.S., and my story was born. I suppose very much a classic trope of the science fiction thriller, which is the question of ultimately what fault lies in the technology versus what responsibility lies with humanity.
Excerpt The Algorithm Will See You Now:
Dalton appeared as if out of thin air, two paper cups in hand, offering one to her without a word. His brown hair was longer, and he hadn’t shaved, his nose and cheeks above his short beard tanned, as if he’d been spending a lot of time outside. Dressed in jeans and a form-fitting long-sleeved t-shirt, he didn’t resemble the type-A, perfectionist High Resident she’d known. He looked… good. Better than he had a right to.
Hope accepted the coffee, sipping at it to hide her disorientation. It was the perfect temperature. Of course it was. He never got anything wrong. She mumbled a thank you.
He took a seat at the other end of the bench, the one he’d specified on the park’s west side near the boat dock. Two days ago, when she’d tracked him down by phone at the nonprofit Jacie had traced him to, he’d practically hung up on her. He’d refused to communicate further except in person, and today had been the soonest he could meet, the two days an eternity to wait and do nothing.
Dalton raised his cup toward hers. “I don’t know how you drink those. Mochas were always too sweet for me.”
Her cheeks warmed and not from the coffee.
“You look tired,” he continued. “But PRIMA will do that to you.”
She gripped the cup. No ‘hello’ or ‘nice to see you again, Hope’ or ‘great to hear from you’ or, maybe, even ‘I missed you.’ She didn’t know why she’d expected anything different. It wasn’t like he’d made any effort to reach out to her after leaving the program. After he’d left her without a word. She flexed her fingers to stop herself from crushing the cup. She’d ask the questions she needed to ask and move on. “Thanks for meeting me. I won’t take up too much of your time.”
When he’d vanished from PRIMA last year, mere weeks before finishing his residency, it had been as if he’d dropped off the face of the earth. He’d deleted all his socials. Total ghosting. She hadn’t heard his name mentioned at PRIMA until she’d spoken it last week outside the O.R.
His non-responder case—the one Maddox’s question had made her recall—had been switched to attending-only. Hope had to admit she’d never tried to find out what happened after. She’d been too upset about Dalton leaving without a word and then caught up in her subsequent promotion to High Resident. It had been a relief when the attending assumed the case.
Now, something convinced her on a gut level that his prior case could shed light on her current situation. Something only Dalton would know—about Maddox and her putting Hope on unjustified leave. Something connected to his disappearance last year.
But how to start? She squinted into the sunlight. Lumbering slate clouds approached and threatened the sun break wouldn’t last long. A steady stream of bikers and walkers mobbed the path—a mix of determined exercisers in spandex, more casual senior citizens, and young parents out for air. The latter pushed their offspring in various types of strollers, some of which had more the appearance of bizarre high-tech grocery carts than conveyances designed to carry human children.
She took a deep breath. “I need to ask you about that patient. The one from before you left.”
He didn’t appear to be listening, his gaze on a distant point out on the lake.
Snatches of conversations reached Hope’s ears, and the breeze carried the scent of impending rain. A red balloon hovered above the trees, no doubt escaped from a child’s hand. It floated higher and higher, a speck in the looming sky.
Just when she thought he hadn’t heard her and she needed to repeat herself, Dalton spoke. “Ah, PRIMA. To optimize and flourish…”
Hope had forgotten his habit of philosophizing. In the past, it had made her dismiss why she’d been upset, but this time, she couldn’t afford to forget. She wouldn’t let herself forget. They’d been a team, or at least she had thought so. He might pretend that meant nothing now, but Hope couldn’t. She took another careful sip of coffee. She needed to focus on why she was here. Focus on what she could control. “I’m sorry to have dragged you away from your job. But I think you might help shed light on a… situation… at PRIMA—”
“To optimize.” He went on as if she hadn’t spoken. “From the Latin root ops, referring to power. To make as perfect as possible.”
The air, for a moment, carried the scent of Maddox’s perfume. Power with a capital P. Hope shuffled her feet under her. It was only her imagination.
Dalton chuckled to himself before taking a long drink. “A situation at PRIMA. Surprise, surprise…”
She studied his profile, the addition of the facial hair camouflaging the firm lines of his jaw, and considered whether his recollection of what coffee she preferred was simply a function of his perfect memory, or if it meant anything more. She cleared her throat again. “I had a non-responder, and I realized it was the first time since—”
“PRIMA is supposed to weed out the non-responders, isn’t it, Hope?”
What exciting project are you working on next?
I recently submitted the final edits on my second book, The Committee Will Kill You Now, to my publisher. It’s a prequel to The Algorithm Will See You Now and will be published in November 2023. Although each book can be read as a standalone, this next book features two of my characters from Algorithm in their younger years. It essentially tells the “villain origin story” of the antagonist in Algorithm, Dr. Marah Maddox, wrapped up in a historical thriller about the inhumanity of physician training in the 1990s interwoven with the true-life history of the medical rationing of the first kidney dialysis in 1960s Seattle. It will also be published by Black Rose Writing Press.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Oh gosh, even though I’m a published author now, I still have moments where I see my bio and think, is that true? Am I a writer? I believe the saying, “If you write, you’re a writer,” but I struggle with imposter syndrome and, like many, a dependence on external validation, which I’m constantly working on. I think, along those lines, when I was chosen for Pitch Wars in November 2019, that was what allowed me to start thinking of myself as a “real” writer. Only because this external program had chosen me and given me that external validation I thought I needed. Which, I want to emphasize, no writer should need. But I think many of us still do.
Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your workday like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I don’t write full-time. I’m still a practicing physician four days per week, so that leaves me three days a week to write. I usually write on Fridays when my kids are in school and on weekends in the mornings when they’re still sleeping. My kids are tween and teen, which makes it easier than for someone with young children.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
I may not write every day, but I’m kind of good at getting big chunks of words down on the days I do write. Sometimes up to 3000-4000.
It helps that I’m a speedy typist, which I attribute to piano playing in my younger years.
As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be an ambulance driver. I think it was something about being able to turn on the sirens and drive fast and run all the red lights (at least, that’s how my five-year-old self thought it worked).
Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
Becoming a published author in my late forties has been amazing and something I never would have dreamt for myself even a decade ago. I hope it can show others there’s no age that’s “too late.”
Links:
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble
Blog Tour Calendar
April 3rd @ The Muffin
Join us at WOW! Women on Writing as we celebrate the launch of The Algorithm Will See You Now by JL Lycette. Read an interview with the author and have the chance to win a copy of the book for yourself. https://muffin.wow-womenonwriting.com
April 7th @ One Writer’s Journey
Visit Sue’s blog for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://suebe.wordpress.com/
April 8th @ The Book Diva’s Reads
Don’t miss an excerpt of The Algorithm Will See You Now. You can also win a copy of the book! https://thebookdivasreads.com/
April 10th @ One Writer’s Journey
Join Sue for a guest post by author JL Lycette about what it’s like to start a writing career in her 40s. https://suebe.wordpress.com/
April 11th @ Life According to Jamie
Don’t miss Jamie’s review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://www.lifeaccordingtojamie.com
April 13th @ A Storybook World
Join Deirdra for a feature of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://www.astorybookworld.com/
April 14th @ Beverley A. Baird’s Blog
Visit Beverley’s blog for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com/
April 15th @ Boots, Shoes, and Fashion
Join Linda for her insightful interview with author JL Lycette about her book The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://bootsshoesandfashion.com
April 16th @ Seaside Book Nook
Join Jilleen for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. http://www.seasidebooknook.com/
April 17th @ Sara Trimble’s Blog
Join Sara for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. You’ll also have a chance to win a copy of the book! https://saratrimble.wordpress.com/
April 17th @ Writer, Writer Pants on Fire
Visit Mindy’s blog for JL Lycette’s guest post on how to write when you have a demanding day job. https://www.mindymcginnis.com/blog
April 19th @ Beverley A. Baird’s Blog
Join Beverley for a guest post by JL Lycette about how writing and storytelling helped her recover from burnout. https://beverleyabaird.wordpress.com/
April 20th @ Sara Trimble’s Blog
Join Sara again for a guest post by JL Lycette about how the current-day applications of AI inspired her book. https://saratrimble.wordpress.com
April 22nd @ From the TBR Pile
Join Kari for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://fromthetbrpile.blogspot.com/
April 23rd @ The Faerie Review
Join Lily for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://www.thefaeriereview.com
April 24th @ HERE!
April 25th @ The Forgotten Books
Join Heather for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. Win a copy of the book too! https://www.instagram.com/The_forgotten_books_/
April 27th @ Knotty Needle
Visit Judy’s blog for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. http://knottyneedle.blogspot.com/
April 29th @ The Wonderful World of Words
Visit Joy’s blog for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. You also have the chance to win a copy of the book! https://awonderfulworldofwords.blogspot.com/
May 1st @ Liberate and Lather
Join Angie for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://liberateandlather.com/
May 2nd @ Writer Advice
Join B. Lynn Goodwin for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://writeradvice.com/
May 3rd @ Word Magic
Visit Fiona’s blog for her feature of The Algorithm Will See You Now. http://fionaingramauthor.blogspot.com/
May 4th @ Writer Advice
Visit B. Lynn Goodwin’s site again for JL Lycette’s guest post about her experience as a mentee in 2019 Pitch Wars mentorship program. https://writeradvice.com/
May 5th @ Storeybook Reviews
Read Leslie’s review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. https://storeybookreviews.com/
May 6th @ The Mommies Review
Join Glenda for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now.
https://www.themommiesreviews.com/
May 6th @ Bookwoman Joan
Visit Joan’s blog for her review of The Algorithm Will See You Now. She’ll also be giving away a copy of the book too! https://bookwomanjoan.blogspot.com/
Thank you for having me on your blog, Lisa! This was such a fun interview!
Great interview!