The first book in Jeff VanderMeer's Southern Reach trilogy focuses on humanity's weird relationship with nature and how we react to the unknown. We look at how VanderMeer wrote the book, the unique publishing strategy behind it and his choice to strip the characters of their identities, while still representing an all female cast.

Interested in the media we discussed this episode? Please support the show by purchasing it through our affiliate store:

• Annihilation
• Area X (the collected Southern Reach Trilogy)
• Injection
• Prince of Darkness
• The Peripheral
• The Other Side of the Mountain
• Tainaron: Mail from Another City
• Pattiann Rogers works

Additional Resources:

• Annihilation: “Weird” Nature
• Jeff VanderMeer: 'Power of Nature' Inspired New Sci-Fi Novel 'Annihilation'
• Finally, a novel about weird science that's genuinely weird
• The boundary-pushing fiction of Sean McDonald and his new FSG imprint, MCD
• From Annihilation to Acceptance: A Writer’s Surreal Journey
• An Interview With Jeff VanderMeer: "Full Disclosure, I'm Really A Komodo Dragon"
• I’m Jeff VanderMeer, the author of the Southern Reach Trilogy (Annihilation, Authority, and Acceptance). AMA!