Beyond the Page: Can Science Prove Life After Death? | Don Schechter on Ascendants
Page Chewing · Sep 24, 2026 · 1:00:41
Page Chewing · Sep 24, 2026 · 1:00:41
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In this episode of Beyond the Page, Steve sits down with filmmaker, professor, TEDx director, and author Don Schechter to discuss his science fiction techno thriller Ascendants.
Don shares the remarkable 20 year journey that took Ascendants from an idea for a film to a series of short films and eventually a novel. They explore the book's collision of science and belief, what happens when technology divides society into those who can "ascend" and those who cannot, and why the story feels particularly timely in the age of AI and enormously powerful technology companies.
The conversation also dives into the realities of publishing and book marketing, finding the right audience, the influence of Dune, Star Trek, Arrival, Children of Men and other science fiction, and Don's work in filmmaking, education, and TEDx.
And, of course, we discover one of the strangest pizza-and-Coke combinations we've heard on the show.
Find Don: https://ascendantsbook.com/
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