Cwej: Springs Eternal - Sean Dillon Interview

We end this round of Cwej: Springs Eternal interviews with Sean Dillon. Check out the interview for fascinating reveals, and get to know Sean in the process!

art by Jonne Bartelds

Can you tell us a little about yourself?
I've been working as an editor for Arcbeatle Press since Down the Middle. I mostly work as a high school teacher and comics critic, and I have published two books.

What was your introduction to the Doctor Who universe?
The first Doctor Who story I ever watched was Daleks in Manhattan. Which should’ve been the end of it, all things considered. But I had a hankering for top 10 lists as a kid and saw one on the 9th Doctor, which made me curious. This being back when Doctor Who was on Hulu and Netflix, it was easy to watch an assortment of episodes, and I fell in love rather quickly.

What is your take on the character of Chris Cwej?
In spite of everything, he tries to do the right thing. He’s not an incompetent fool, but he’s someone who, on some level, knows he’s never seeing Heaven. He wants to live in a world where no one else would do the things he does, but he will forever be damned. There’s a kind of melancholy to him.

What makes your Cwej story unique?
I think it's the smallness of it all. While on the surface, a story about the concept of love being completely removed from the cosmos, the emphasis is on Cwej’s relationship with his past. I also think the exploration of the baddie, who I don’t think I can name, was a lot of fun. Having empathy for someone truly monstrous such that they lament killing only in the millions was fascinating and uncomfortable to enact.

Would you like to mention any influences or inspirations?
Douglas Adams, would be the obvious one. I often go for comedy when doing things like Cwej, highlighting the absurdity of the world. But there’s also a dagger of darkness within, especially the opening scene with the story’s baddie. There’s also a degree of musicality to it, such that the original ending had Cwej sing the Beatles song All You Need Is Love.

Did you face any interesting challenges in the course of writing?
I was actually assigned this story rather than pitching it. The original writer had to drop out due to things occuring outside of their personal life, and the editors thought I did a good job engaging with the mentality of the antagonist in my other story in the Seasons collection (coming later this year) that I was given the oppertunity to write this one. I went in a bit of a different direction than the original pitch, but that’s how writing often goes.

What’s your next creative project, and is there anywhere readers can follow you?
Currently, I’m working on two projects: one is a series of books about the complete history of Star Trek with Lena Mactíre and the other is a long gestating book on media criticism of the early 2000s and the rise of fascism. I can be followed on most social media apps @deathchrist2000.

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