The Corbett Report has featured Canadian author John C.A. Manley in a wide-ranging discussion on what host James Corbett called “resistance fiction,” using novels to challenge official narratives and explore themes of authoritarianism, technology and personal freedom.
During the interview, Manley said he wrote Much Ado About Corona in response to Canada’s 2020 lockdowns, describing the book as a fictional story set in Ontario during the pandemic period that follows ordinary characters navigating restrictions, social division and state pressure.
He said the novel grew out of fears over where lockdown policies were heading and was shaped as an emotional rather than purely political response, while Corbett praised the book for avoiding one-dimensional characters and showing motivations on both sides of the conflict.
The conversation also turned to Manley’s science-fiction work All the Humans Are Sleeping, which imagines survivors of a catastrophe facing a choice between harsh reality and immersion in a virtual world, with both men arguing that fiction can shape how readers think about power, technology and social control.
Corbett said he plans to revive his “Film, Literature and the New World Order” series following the interview, framing narrative as a powerful force in influencing public consciousness and resistance to tyranny.
