Last time Lisa Wilkes was on my blog, she was talking about her first book Flight Path in preparation for the release of her next book, Mid-Flight. I recently read Mid-Flight and am pleased to announce that Lisa agreed to an in depth interview. 

Lexi Brennan is a flight attendant in the year 2037 when a meteor shower veers off course and strikes earth. The plane her best friend is on is hit by the falling space debris and all on board are incinerated immediately. Lexi feels extreme guilt because she was scheduled to be on that plane as well, but switched shifts. Jason Bresline is an airplane mechanic who is called in to do emergency fixes when the meteor shower hits. His mentor is also killed on one of the planes hit. Jason’s engagement falls apart shortly after. He and Lexi meet in Orlando, FL a year later for different training sessions for Skyline, the airline they both work for. They spend each night after classes together, getting to know each other and falling in love.

But all is not well in post-meteor America. The meteor shower brought a new disease that humans are struggling to combat. The fear of this disease, ContaCan, causes extremists to seize control of the government and implement totalitarian policies. Lexi, her brother, her friends, and Jason plan a way to secretly fight against the new policies. Jason and Lexi’s relationship is also one of healing and self-acceptance. Both have past traumas and hurt that they have to overcome in order to fully give themselves to one another.

I really enjoyed Ms. Wilkes’ world building. The connections between the fictional ContaCan and the real life Covid pandemics are very clear. She also expands upon very real fears that POCs and LGBTQ+ Americans face. Basically, Ms. Wilkes answered “What would America look like if the extremists gained control?” The technological advancements were also very intriguing.

So, let’s take a look at Ms. Wilkes’ world building. First, this is a Sci-Fi Romance, so technological advancements are expected. In American 2038, everyone has a chip implant called AutoScan which allows you to call, text, and receive information using brain waves. Text messages, news articles, and Internet searches show up across one’s cornea. The image my brain conjured when reading was a miniature screen constantly on your eyeball. People also use their thumbprint to pay for purchases and identify themselves. But this thumb scan is more than a driver’s license. All information has been made public – for national security, of course.

The disease brought on by the meteor shower is called Contagious Cancer – ContaCan for short. The world went into quarantine while scientists scrambled to find a cure (sound familiar?). Once a vaccine was made available, the world attempted to return to normal, but one problem emerged: the vaccine didn’t work on everyone. These people are labeled AR, or Antidote Resistant. ARs are forced to register as such by having their documentation readily available and get a government sanctioned tattoo on their left shoulder blade that reads “AR”. As the story progresses, Lexi and Jason watch via AutoScan how the government continues to pass more and more policies that chip away at human rights for ARs. The whole thing is very reminiscent of WWII. 

Another layer to the story is the diversity representation among the characters. Lexi is bisexual, Colin is gay and suffers from mental illness, Jorge is gay and Latino, Jason is Black, Colleen is lesbian, and Reggie is gay and Black. Each character has suffered discrimination due to their race and/or sexuality. 

I think my favorite thing about the above representation is Lexi and Jason’s relationship. Lexi is white and Jason is Black, but their racial and cultural differences don’t play into the tensions and struggles they are facing. It was really refreshing to see an interracial couple who could focus on things other than race. Not to say race is or should be ignored, because it’s not. Lexi and Jason do have conversations about his experience as the youngest Black airplane mechanic in the south; it’s just not the main plot point. And as someone who is in an interracial marriage, I really appreciate what Ms. Wilkes did with that part of the plot. 

And now, onto the interview portion with Lisa Wilkes!

Chelsey: What was your inspiration for Mid-Flight? How did you come up with this story?

Lisa: Mid-Flight was originally going to be an aviation-themed love story, similar to my first published novel, Flight Path. However, Mid-Flight’s plot (and setting) changed drastically as I witnessed a lot of wild things occurring in society. The book was written in 2019 and 2020. At that time, I was completing my graduate school internship in the behavioral health unit of a hospital. Many of my clients had endured horrible abuse and mistreatment, which deeply impacted their mental health. I decided my next book would address those injustices. I wanted to shed light on the iniquities rampant in modern society, so my readers would be inspired to address these issues and take a stance in favor of equality and inclusion.

Mid-Flight’s characters are very diverse. Lexi is a bisexual flight attendant, Jason is the youngest Black mechanic at SkyLine Airways, and Colin is a brilliant programmer battling mental illness. The story aims to remind readers that we all have so much to offer this world. It also seeks to demonstrate that our differences can unify—rather than divide—us, especially as we work toward building a better and brighter future for all of humanity. I felt the book would be more impactful if it was set in the future, since the hostility and antagonism we see in our current world might be greatly magnified over the years, unless we take deliberate steps to protect those facing oppression.

Chelsey: How did you come up with the technological advancements? Are these advancements something you would like to see in real life?

Lisa: Mid-Flight’s technological references were a combination of my wild imagination and real-life initiatives/developments within the tech sector. For example, there are actual programs similar to AutoScan, where electrodes can scan our scalp for impulses and assess what we are thinking. Of course, there’s still a long way to go before the technology is perfected and made available to the public, but it was really fun to imagine how that might look fourteen years in the future!

I also really enjoyed writing about solar-powered cars, tablets, and buildings. I’m a huge fan of sustainable energy, and I truly believe our planet deserves far better than the treatment we have given it thus far. So it was exciting to envision the ways energy could be harnessed to power our lives without negatively impacting the environment.

Chelsey: Off the top of my head, it appears the majority of your characters identify as LGBTQ+. Was that a conscious decision? Or did your characters tell you who they were as you created them?

Lisa: I’d like to hope the world is becoming more accepting of the LGBTQ+ community, although recent legislation would indicate otherwise. I felt compelled to write a book that offered a positive alternative to the recent hostility we have witnessed from lots of folks in power. In my novel, I aimed to show the beauty of all these characters with different preferences, identities, and orientations. Lexi’s sexuality is nuanced and complex, so I really tried to capture that with sensitivity. Her best friend and her brother are gay. They are also amazing humans who deserve to be valued and appreciated. I guess it wasn’t really a conscious decision for me, as the author of Mid-Flight. But I am so glad these characters showed—and embraced—their authentic selves for the whole world to see.

Chelsey: I would like to applaud you for writing an interracial couple whose struggles have nothing to do with cultural differences. Same question as above. Did you consciously choose the race of each character or did they tell you who they were?

Lisa: This was a conscious decision. Lexi had experienced her own struggles; she was no stranger to exclusion or microaggressions. However, she didn’t know the full extent of  discrimination until she met Jason and learned all the nonsense he’d faced because of his skin color. Lexi and Jason fell in love easily, linked by their tragic losses as well as their triumphs…and their powerful desire to make a difference in a broken world. It was important for these characters to represent different ethnic backgrounds. This reinforced the idea that true, deep, meaningful love is accompanied by a sense of moral responsibility and an ongoing quest for justice.

Chelsey: There are obvious connections between Covid and ContaCon. But the treatment of ARs also reminded me of WWII Japanese Internment Camps and Jewish Concentration Camps. What other world events (if any) inspired the AR plot point? And did you do any historical research for this part of the story?

Lisa: Interestingly, I had a wealth of knowledge in this area since I was completing my Master’s in Social Work when I wrote Mid-Flight. There are countless historical references to exclusion and annihilation of groups who have been vilified by the dominant majority. There are also tons of modern references, sadly; as a social worker, I have witnessed the effects of systemic bigotry. Recent attacks on the trans community have left people without resources, protections, or hope. I needed Mid-Flight to portray the horrifying possibility that extremists will continue to assault anyone arbitrarily deemed “other,” unless we expose and reject that widely-accepted mistreatment. 

The ARs in Mid-Flight, a small subset of the population with a genetic anomaly, might be a new concept. Their plight, however, is a terrible tale that’s been replayed throughout history. It’s time we say enough is enough. Lexi and Jason found a creative way to do this within their airline and their sphere of influence.

Chelsey: Is Lexi and Jason’s story going to continue? What’s next for your writing career? 

Lisa: Originally, I said there would not be a sequel to Mid-Flight. But I’ve been known to break my own rules, so it’s definitely possible I’ll write a follow-up novel at some point! In the meantime, I am working on a different project. I’m approximately 70 pages into my next novel, a metaphysical thriller about a love powerful enough to transcend multiple dimensions.

Lisa is an author, flight attendant, licensed social worker, and animal rescuer. She lives in Florida with her spouse and several rescue furbabies. Lisa uses her royalties to donate to animal rescues. Follow Lisa at her website: Books By Lisa Wilkes