Fantasy and science fiction stories have long embraced the darker themes of a dystopian future. Do these narratives speak to our fears of what the future will bring, or do they reflect the current reality in which the authors live and write? Is futuristic fiction pure escapism, or can it alter our destiny? In this episode of Lit Cast Live, Bay Area authors Charlie Jane Anders (All the Birds in the Sky; The City in the Middle of the Night), and Meg Elison (The Book of the Unnamed Midwife) explore these questions and more in a discussion moderated by Nilgun Bayraktar, a writer and professor at California College of the Arts. This Litquake event was recorded live at the San Francisco Public Library during their Night of Ideas on February 2, 2019. Note - due to technical issues at the time of recording, the audio for some parts of this this episode may appear slightly distorted. Lit Cast greatly appreciates our listeners understanding.