Location: United States
Member Since: May 11, 2010

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Adam Bender

Biography

Adam Bender is an award-winning journalist and author of speculative fiction that explores modern-day societal fears with a mix of action, romance and humor.

Bender's latest novel is Utopia PR, a speculative satire about a public-relations specialist who struggles to find work-life balance while managing crisis after crisis for a dystopian American president.

Previously, Bender wrote The Wanderer and the New West, a near-future western about a rogue vigilante who seeks redemption in a lawless America that fully protects the rights of armed citizens to stand their ground. Named to Kirkus Reviews' Best Books of 2018, the novel also won gold for Dystopia in the 2018 Readers' Favorite Awards and best Western Fiction in the 2018 National Indie Excellence Awards.

Bender authored We, The Watched and Divided We Fall in a dystopian series about an amnesiac who struggles to conform in a surveillance society where the government keeps a Watched list of its own citizens. Also, Bender has published several short stories.

In his day job as a journalist, Bender covers telecom and internet regulation for Communications Daily. He has won awards for his reporting from the Society of Professional Journalists, the Specialized Information Publishers Association, and the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing.

Bender lives in Philadelphia with his wife Mallika and son Rishi. He's usually a rather modest and amiable fellow.

Learn more about the author at WatchAdam.blog. Follow him on Facebook (wethewatched) and @WatchAdam on Twitter and Instagram.

Smashwords Interview

What's the story behind your new novel?
The Wanderer and the New West reinvents the Western novel with a dystopian outlook on a possible America that fully protects the rights of armed citizens to stand their ground.

After writing two dystopian novels about totalitarian governments, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at the dangers of the opposite situation happening -- too little government and too much deregulation. With so many terrible shootings happening in America and a lack of political will to do anything about it, I decided that guns was the issue I wanted to tackle. The Western genre seemed the most natural way to tell the story, and I was excited to try to modernize a genre that is classic but perhaps too associated with the past. By combining the fun action and adventure of that genre with a very current issue, I hope I've created an entertaining book that also contributes to the gun debate.
What's the story behind your We, The Watched series?
My novel We, The Watched and its sequel Divided We Fall is dystopian fiction about a nation where the government keeps close surveillance of its citizens. There is no separation of church and state, so the government isn’t just looking for criminal activity – they are watching for anything they deem to be heresy, which is a great blanket term.

The story came from my feeling somewhat helpless in the wake of 9/11 as the US government passed a series of national security laws to increase surveillance called the PATRIOT Act.

I was fascinated not only by the surveillance itself, but the rationale for it. Everyone was feeling pretty vulnerable and so it was hard not to accept anything that was pitched as preventing another terrorist attack. Besides, how could anyone be against something called the PATRIOT Act?
Read more of this interview.

Where to find Adam Bender online

Website: https://www.adambenderwrites.com
Twitter: @WatchAdam
Facebook: Facebook profile
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/adambenderwriter
Blog: http://watchadam.blog

Where to buy in print

http://www.amazon.com/Adam-Bender/e/B004YXMZZC/

Series

Short Stories by Adam Bender by
Short stories by Adam Bender, author of the novels WE, THE WATCHED and DIVIDED WE FALL.
Life Trade
Price: Free!
Smokers Corner
Price: Free!
Fire Eyes
Price: Free!
Invasion Day
Price: Free!
A LifeTrade Wedding
Price: Free!
Wrong Gate
Price: Free!
LifeTrade by
Stories about a fictional life-exchange matchmaking service.
Life Trade
Price: Free!
A LifeTrade Wedding
Price: Free!
We, The Watched by
Seven enters a dystopia where the government conducts mass surveillance and keeps a Watched list of its own citizens. The Church has become as powerful as the State, and people who resist are called Heretics and face execution. Seven's amnesia gives him a blank-slate perspective that helps him see through the propaganda, and he soon gets involved with a group of rebels called the Underground. But this same perceptive power could get him into a lot of trouble with the government police force known as the Guard.
We, The Watched
Price: $2.99 USD.
Divided We Fall
Price: $2.99 USD.
Fire Eyes
Price: Free!

Books

Six Straight Roads by
Series: Short Stories by Adam Bender. Price: Free! Words: 4,490. Language: English. Published: June 18, 2023 . Categories: Fiction » Coming of age, Fiction » Humor & comedy » General
Matt tries to be the hero at his friend's annual Capture the Flag birthday tournament in this coming-of-age short story set in the Philly suburbs. Sweating and covered with sap, Matt learns who his true friends are beneath the shade of a 20-foot-tall pine tree. In the tradition of fellow sci-fi author Ray Bradbury, Adam Bender reflects on his childhood experiences and the innocence of youth.
Utopia PR by
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 59,560. Language: American English. Published: February 22, 2021 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Utopias & dystopias, Fiction » Humor & comedy » Satire
A sci-fi satire about seeking work-life balance while doing public relations for an authoritarian president. Humor Book Winner in the 2021 IndieReader Discovery Awards.
Wrong Gate by
Series: Short Stories by Adam Bender. Price: Free! Words: 3,120. Language: English. Published: December 23, 2019 . Categories: Fiction » Thriller & suspense » Supernatural, Fiction » Humor & comedy » Black comedy
A businesswoman rushes to make her connection at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, which at 17,207 acres is larger than the island of Manhattan! Will she reach her final destination? In the spirit of The Twilight Zone, "Wrong Gate" is a humorous short story with a terrifying twist.
The Wanderer and the New West by
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 100,890. Language: English. Published: January 16, 2018 . Categories: Fiction » Western, Fiction » Science fiction » Utopias & dystopias
A rogue vigilante seeks redemption in a lawless, near-future America that fully protects the rights of armed citizens to stand their ground against mass shooters and motorcycle gangs. Named to Kirkus Reviews' Best Books of 2018, The Wanderer and the New West won gold for Dystopia in the 2018 Readers' Favorite Awards and best Western Fiction in the 2018 National Indie Excellence Awards.
A LifeTrade Wedding by
Series: LifeTrade · Short Stories by Adam Bender. Price: Free! Words: 3,440. Language: English. Published: April 8, 2017 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories, Fiction » Humor & comedy » Satire
(3.00 from 1 review)
Read about the next direction of matchmaking apps – exchanging lives! A reluctant groom leaves his bride at the altar by trading places with a man who wants to be married. A series of testimonials by the wedding party shows how LifeTrade can give everyone a “happily ever after."
Invasion Day by
Series: Short Stories by Adam Bender. Price: Free! Words: 2,870. Language: American English. Published: December 4, 2016 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories, Fiction » Science fiction » Utopias & dystopias
(4.50 from 2 reviews)
On his tenth birthday, a boy living on the moon asks his grandpa about the blue planet glowing in the forever-night sky, and why they live the way they do. A short story by the author of We, The Watched.
Fire Eyes by
Series: We, The Watched, short story tie-in · Short Stories by Adam Bender. Price: Free! Words: 6,340. Language: English. Published: February 16, 2016 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Utopias & dystopias, Fiction » Thriller & suspense » Action & suspense
For years, underground street artist Ignatius has dodged surveillance cameras to spray-paint a dissident symbol: a dark visage with fiery eyes. Dissatisfied with his impact on the totalitarian country he calls home, Iggy sets his sights on tagging the most important government building in the nation. But will the soldiers of the Guard let him get away with it?
Divided We Fall by
Series: We, The Watched, Book 2. Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 86,500. Language: English. Published: May 10, 2014 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Utopias & dystopias, Fiction » Science fiction » Adventure
A dystopian government orders Agent Eve Parker to arrest her fiancé when he becomes a revolutionary known as Seven. When Eve learns more about the President's plan to broaden citizen surveillance, she begins to question if she's on the right side. Meanwhile, a foreign enemy threatens to take advantage of an increasingly divided nation.
Smokers Corner by
Series: Short Stories by Adam Bender. Price: Free! Words: 3,280. Language: American English. Published: February 13, 2013 . Categories: Fiction » Humor & comedy » General, Fiction » Romance » Short stories
(4.00 from 2 reviews)
Tim loses his addiction for the ho-hum after falling for Samantha during a smoking break. A short romantic comedy.
Life Trade by
Series: LifeTrade · Short Stories by Adam Bender. Price: Free! Words: 3,130. Language: American English. Published: January 5, 2013 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Short stories, Fiction » Humor & comedy » General
(4.00 from 2 reviews)
What if a stranger took over the part of your best friend? In "Life Trade," a would-be screenwriter seeks answers after his buddy is replaced by someone new. He discovers a matching website for people who want to trade places.
We, The Watched by
Series: We, The Watched, Book 1. Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 52,020. Language: English. Published: May 12, 2010 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » Utopias & dystopias, Fiction » Science fiction » Adventure
(3.80 from 5 reviews)
An amnesiac struggles to conform in a surveillance society where the government keeps a Watched list of its own citizens. Seven’s blank-slate perspective lets him see through the propaganda, but attracts the eyes of the Guard.

Adam Bender's tag cloud

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