First of two parts
CHIAYI CITY, Taiwan — For Glenn Schwartz in Philadelphia, writing a cli-fi novel about the weather came easy. He’s a certified broadcast meteorologist who has done the weather on TV for 40 years of his 47-year career. His specialty has been in forecasting and severe weather, especially hurricanes. He co-authored the award-winning Philadelphia Area Weather Book in 2002 and was inducted into the Philadelphia Broadcast Pioneers Hall of Fame in 2010. His debut novel is titled The Weathermaker and is written under the byline of Glenn “Hurricane” Schwartz. More on the nickname later.
At this time in American history when climate change issues are on TV and in newspaper headlines every day, this is a very timely novel. Like all novels, this one is pure fiction. It’s a paperback, and carried now on Amazon’s book ordering site, the price listed is 16 dollars. A plot point worth mentioning: the main character is a Jewish meteorologist named Neil Stephenson. He works for a TV station in Baltimore, and in the course of the story, he consults with a local rabbi over some issues and somehow Iran finds out what Neil is doing and geopolitical hijinks ensue. This yarn is going to be one for the books!
“The main character’s father warned him not to do it. Neil Stephenson can control the weather — but should he?” summarized the author in an email to me. “He is already a rising star TV meteorologist in Baltimore. During a snowstorm that isn’t producing as much snow as predicted, Neil discovers his gift: he can make the snow increase or decrease and make it start or stop raining.”
How’s that for a hook? You won’t want to stop reading once you start. I’ve known the author for two years when I helped him find a publisher for a manuscript he sent me by email. I recommended Sunbury Press in Pennsylvania and publisher Lawrence Knorr took Schwartz’s book on.
The added bonus to this 200-page novel is that the author is a professional meteorologist, and ”the science,” as Greta Thunberg like to say, is accurate. In addition, 40 years as a TV weatherman has given Glenn Schwartz a lot of “inside TV news” stories.
When I was asked to write a blurb for the novel in my capacity as editor of The Cli-Fi Report, I blurbed: “This is both a cli-fi thriller and a who-dun-it, written by a professional TV meteorologist. In this age of eco-anxiety over floods, droughts and hurricanes, this novel is both a gripping read and an entertaining wake up call.”
People are fascinated by meteorological phenomena, and Schwartz has taken explaining extreme weather to another level. Climate science journalists like Andy Revkin, Sarah Kaplan, Emily Atkin and Andrew Freedman will love this book. Art mirrors life.
Even acclaimed climate scientist Michael Mann read the book and said: “It’s been said that everybody complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it. Well, in The Weathermaker, however, Philadelphia’s legendary TV Meteorologist Glenn Schwartz spins an entertaining yarn about a meteorologist who does indeed do something about the weather. And in the process, he tells a cautionary tale about the threats posed both by human-caused climate change and perilous ‘geoengineering’ quick fixes that have been proposed to deal with it.”
About that nickname? Schwartz told San Diego Jewish World that he got it in New York City after a TV anchor saw a video of him being blown around during one of his hurricane chases.
*
Dan Bloom is a freelance writer and inveterate web surfer based in Chiayi City, Taiwan. He may be contacted via dan.bloom@sdjewishworld.com
Pingback: Fictional weather-maker faces religious controversy - San Diego Jewish World