A thoughtful interview with Daniel Kaszor from 2013. Highlight:
Post Arcade: Your work, both in your novels and in video games tends to be about people figuring out which parts of their identities are malleable and which parts are essential. Is this a theme that speaks to you? If so, why?
Jill Murray: That’s an interesting observation. I don’t know that I’ve looked at it that way before, but I guess I do see that as one of the bigger challenges of life. It’s central to everything. At once, each of us has a place in society, but we also influence society itself through our very presence. The push-and-pull of that drives a lot of conflict in fiction and reality alike. Games and books allow us to try on different identities and ideas– to “become” something else and discover how it feels. Sometimes it can be a path to self-discovery, or to understanding the systems that drive our world. Many wise people have argued that distilling life down to its essence is the root of peace and happiness. The question I’m always working on is “okay, but HOW?”