We chat with author Jillian Cantor about The Season of Light and Darkness, which follows a girl who is woken early from her cryogenic slumber to find the authoritarian rule her family had hoped to escape is still very much in effect.
Hi, Jillian! Can you tell our readers a bit about yourself?
Hi! I’m the author of 15 novels for teens and adults. I’ve published contemporary, literary, and historical fiction and now I have just published my first dystopian YA, THE SEASON OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS out August 4th with Simon Pulse.
When did you first discover your love for writing and stories?
I’ve always loved to read, from a very young age. I spent all my elementary school summers begging my mom to take me to the library and then I would check out as many books as the library would let me. I’d read them all in a few days and beg my mom to take me back for more. My first foray into writing fiction I was in 4th grade and had a teacher who assigned us to write one short story each week for the whole year. I was hooked!
Quick lightning round! Tell us:
- The first book you ever remember reading: The entire Nancy Drew series.
- The one that made you want to become an author: The Great Gatsby
- The one that you can’t stop thinking about: The Handmaid’s Tale
Your latest novel, The Season of Light and Darkness, is out now! If you could only describe it in five words, what would they be?
Thaw, live, love, run, fight
What can readers expect?
The Season of Light and Darkness is a dystopian novel set in a near-future authoritarian America where science is outlawed. My main character Ellie’s father was a scientist working in cryogenics, and when the anti-science government first took power he attempted to freeze their family in order to stay safe. However, a lot went wrong, and the book starts when the government finds Ellie and thaws her years early. Meanwhile, her brother, Scott, and her best friend, Mateo, have been hiding out in the mountains with a band of teenage rebels and when they realize what’s happened to her, they have to leave their own safety to try and save her.
Where did the inspiration for The Season of Light and Darkness come from?
I love dystopian novels and I’ve always wanted to write one myself. I actually first started working on this book over ten years ago – it started for me with the idea of Ellie being frozen and then being thawed into a version of our world that she wouldn’t at all understand or recognize. But at the time I wasn’t really sure where the book went after she woke up or what the world would be like and I set it down for years. I really started thinking about it again in the aftermath of the Covid era, seeing people who refused to believe in science. That inspired me to pull the book out and keep working on it again.
Were there any moments or characters you really enjoyed writing or exploring?
All of them! I truly had so much fun writing this book, and when I finally came back to it after so many years the process was really effortless and joyful. But of the characters, I think Olivia ended up being my favorite to write. She’s the one character who’s fully embedded in the new anti-science world, having followed all the authoritarian rules. At least. . . initially.
Did you face any challenges whilst writing? How did you overcome them?
The biggest challenge was my 10 year gap between writing the first 50 pages and writing the rest. And having the courage to pull those first 50 pages out of the proverbial drawer so many years later. It was time, distance, and not being able to forget these particular characters that brought me back to it after so long.
What’s next for you?
The sequel to The Season of Light and Darkness will be out in August 2027. I just finished writing that and I’m really excited for readers to discover what happens next for Ellie and her friends! And I’m currently working on writing my next adult novel, which will be out with Atria in summer 2028.
Lastly, what books are you looking forward to picking up? Any you’ve read so far this year that you’ve enjoyed?
I just got a copy of Sunlight Finds You by Laura Moriarty which I’ve been so excited to read. And I just finished reading an early copy of Brenda Janowitz’s The Introvert’s Guide to Kissing in Europe (out Aug 18th) and really loved it!
