--- title: Blake Crouch on New Book 'Upgrade' and Future of Sci-Fi description: In an interview, the author of 'Wayward Pines' and 'Dark Matter' discusses his latest thriller and why no longer calls himself a writer of science fiction. canonical: https://time.com/6189737/blake-crouch-interview-upgrade/ author: Annabel Gutterman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2022-07-06T19:30:04.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:54:09.463Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: Blake Crouch No Longer Believes in Science Fiction og:description: The novelist discusses his gene-editing thriller, 'Upgrade' og:url: https://time.com/6189737/blake-crouch-interview-upgrade/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta05856584ca451ed/698a3314457a526255d668c7/blake-crouch.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: blake-crouch og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Blake Crouch No Longer Believes in Science Fiction twitter:description: The novelist discusses his gene-editing thriller, 'Upgrade' twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta05856584ca451ed/698a3314457a526255d668c7/blake-crouch.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Blake Crouch No Longer Believes in Science Fiction > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account.  by [Annabel Gutterman](https://time.com/author/annabel-gutterman/)  ## Annabel Gutterman Senior Editor Jul 6, 2022 7:30 PM UTC  Author Blake Crouch will publish his latest novel, 'Upgrade,' on July 12. Author Blake Crouch will publish his latest novel, 'Upgrade,' on July 12.Matthew Staver  by [Annabel Gutterman](https://time.com/author/annabel-gutterman/)  ## Annabel Gutterman Senior Editor Jul 6, 2022 7:30 PM UTC In 2019, [Blake Crouch published _Recursion_](https://time.com/collection/must-read-books-2019/5724600/recursion/), a sci-fi thriller about a neurological disease that inflicts memories upon people of lives that are not their own. Before that, he introduced readers to a physics professor who is kidnapped and then catapulted into alternate universes in his 2016 novel _Dark Matter_. Both books bring to life the type of technology that, in imagined worlds, would have the capability to change humankind. So when Crouch set out to write about the very real [genetic modification technology CRISPR](https://time.com/5642755/crispr-gene-editing-humans/), he knew it would be a different prospect. “Unlike quantum mechanics—as I don’t think anyone believes we’re on the precipice of opening the multiverse and going into other worlds—with gene editing, we’re right there,” the author says. “We’re a few breakthroughs away from being able to truly rewrite what it means to be human.” Crouch positions that idea at the heart of his new book _Upgrade_, out July 12_,_ which follows the devastating consequences of a genome editing scheme gone wrong. In _Upgrade_, Logan Ramsey is the adult son of a defamed scientist whose [CRISPR-like technology](https://time.com/4377130/crispr-genome-editing/) caused millions of people to die. When Logan’s own genome is hacked, he becomes an “upgraded” version of himself: he can focus better, read faster, and operate on a lot less sleep. But his upgrade comes at a cost—and he’s determined to find out who is behind what’s happening to him. As Crouch explores Logan’s changing psyche, he asks big questions about the [future of gene editing](https://time.com/5709388/the-gene-editing-revolution-is-already-here/) and what it could mean for society. The author spoke to TIME about why he’s “terrified” of the book he’s about to release, why he no longer thinks of himself as an author of science fiction, and how he finds hope when the future looks increasingly bleak. ### **TIME:** **You did a ton of research on gene editing for** **_Upgrade_** **. Was there anything you learned that stood out?** **Blake Crouch:** The big thing I came away with is how afraid scientists are of this research and this technology. I didn’t realize how unnerved everyone was about both the optimistic potential of this technology—but also the pitfalls that await us. ### **How much liberty did you take with the science?** Not as much as I thought I would have to take, which terrifies me. This book is going to be sold as science fiction, as a futuristic thriller. But I really don’t think it is. We’re already living in the future—I don’t think science fiction exists anymore. All of the threats and promises in this book are at our fingertips. [Jennifer Doudna](https://time.com/collection-post/3822554/emmanuelle-charpentier-jennifer-doudna-2015-time-100/), one of the co-creators of CRISPR, talks about having this nightmare of Hitler discovering it. That always stuck with me: the person who discovered this gene-modification therapy is kept up at night, fearful of what might happen. **Read More**: [_How Jennifer Doudna’s Life Has Changed Since Discovering CRISPR 10 Years Ago_](https://time.com/6192962/crispr-jennifer-doudna-10-year-anniversary/) ### **Hold on. When did you start to believe that science fiction doesn’t exist anymore?** With this book. From \[my 2012-2014 trilogy\] [_Wayward Pines_](https://time.com/3856019/review-wayward-pines/), I’ve considered myself someone who writes science fiction. I was writing about what the future might hold. Now, we hold phones in our hand that can summon groceries and cars and future spouses. We’re living in the future. I’m not a writer who wants to say that science and technology are bad. No, it’s amazing! Technology is why we still have civilization. But man, this is the most powerful tool we’ve ever invented. We’ve got to be careful with it.  ### **If not sci-fi, what is** **_Upgrade_** **?** The book is set slightly in the future, because I wanted to accelerate where some of the climate change and more in-the-weeds technology was heading, but it’s a mirror of where we might be five minutes from now. I have three kids. I am uncertain. Everyone seems to feel that way. Are we going to be here prevalently as a species in 100 years, 75 years? It’s a weird thing for a species with full sentience to contemplate its demise. The last dodo bird didn’t know it was the last dodo bird. **Read More**: [_27 New Books You Need to Read This Summer_](https://time.com/6178938/best-books-summer-2022/) ### **After he’s upgraded, Logan realizes that he can essentially turn his emotions off. He says: “I could put my feelings inside this cage, I could close the door.” Have you ever wished for that kind of ability?** I wear my heart on my sleeve. It’s how I tap into character. One of the things that made me want to be a sci-fi writer, before we eschewed the idea that I’m a sci-fi writer, is that I love the imagination of it all. What I missed were characters I cared about. It always felt like a writer came up with a really cool idea but forgot that all anyone cares about at the end of the day is character journeys. We just want to read about other people going through life. I want to bring that into high concept, quote unquote, science fiction. ### **Do you watch the show** **_Severance_** **?** Oh, my God, I love that show. It’s the first thing I’ve seen in a decade that I am madly jealous that I didn’t come up with that idea. It’s amazing. ### **It also raises this question of whether it’s possible to literally turn off a part of yourself to get something done. That idea really resonated with a lot of fans of the show—why do you think that is?** All we see all the time is the bad news. What _Severance_ ultimately tapped into and, maybe what I was going for but didn’t realize, is that this is a very hard time to be alive. Every day we’re confronted with headlines, and I don’t know how a sane, compassionate, empathetic person couldn’t wish, to some degree, to be able to forget all that and just do your work. I wrote _Upgrade_ during the time of COVID and it was hardest book I’ve ever written, not just because of the subject matter, but because no one knew how bad this pandemic was going to be. Were we looking at _Contagion_? Was everything ever going to go back to normal? **Read More**: [Severance _Is the Rare ‘Galaxy-Brain’ Show Smart Enough to Blow Your Mind_](https://time.com/6148703/severance-review-apple/) ### **There is a pandemic-type event in the book. Are you purposefully nodding to COVID?** I started it in September 2019\. My first attempt was a completely different way in: I had imagined doing almost a _Jurassic Park_ thing, more about how gene editing could affect new life-forms. Then COVID hit, and I had this realization: think about what we’re going through right now. Why would I not be writing about this technology vis à vis humanity? I had written almost an entire novel, but I ended up throwing that away and starting over. ### **With the world being as scary as it is, what gives you hope?** There’s a moment in the book where Logan says something like, you can’t sacrifice humanity to save humanity, because if you do, you’re giving up the whole game. I fell into that like a trust fall. It’s not necessarily my first instinct, but that’s all we have at this point: trust and compassion. Trust that we’ve gotten this far. We are ultimately a cooperative species. We have to trust that we’re going to get through this very dark time together. _This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/6189737/blake-crouch-interview-upgrade/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/6189737/blake-crouch-interview-upgrade/"},"headline":"Blake Crouch No Longer Believes in Science Fiction","datePublished":"2022-07-06T19:30:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:54:09.463Z","description":"In an interview, the author of 'Wayward Pines' and 'Dark Matter' discusses his latest thriller and why no longer calls himself a writer of science fiction.","url":"https://time.com/6189737/blake-crouch-interview-upgrade/","keywords":["Books","Exclusive","culturepod"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta05856584ca451ed/698a3314457a526255d668c7/blake-crouch.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Annabel Gutterman","jobTitle":"Senior Editor","url":"https://time.com/author/annabel-gutterman/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta05856584ca451ed/698a3314457a526255d668c7/blake-crouch.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"blake-crouch","caption":"Portrait of Blake Crouch","creditText":"Matthew Staver","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/books/","name":"Books"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/6189737/blake-crouch-interview-upgrade/","name":"Blake Crouch No Longer Believes in Science Fiction"}}]}] ```