What is Animalia?

Hello world! Welcome to my website.

I'm Griffin Forrest, an ER doc, USAF veteran, dad, backpacker, and "writer."

I'm not really sure how you found yourself here, but welcome. Glad to have you.

Q: What is Animalia?

Animalia is my novel. It's a "fully-realized" modern-day political fable with teeth.

The Animalian Universe is my overarching term for my fantasy setting with anthropomorphic animals. I use this setting to tell stories about oppression and tyranny. Within the Animalian Universe, there is a county called "Animalia" where most of the events of the first novel occur.

Q: What? You said you are a writer. Can you be more clear?

Fact: I was an engineer first. I am also a doctor. So, no.

Animalia: my unpublished book.

Animalia Universe: the universe/world where this book is set.

Animalia: the county within the Animalian universe.

Q: Is this just a ripoff of Animal Farm?

Gosh, I hope not. Orwell's Animal Farm is a classic, oft considered one of the top 100 novels of all time. Yet, Animal Farm is his thinly veiled allegory story about the Russian revolution. It's very easy to read Orwell and think "Well, that's not relevant to me. In his story, the characters go from one oppressor to another (spoiler alert!): from the farmer to the pigs. In Animalia, the animals have a stable democracy--a shining pasture on a hill. Yet, it's up to them to keep it.

Surely there's no modern parallel to that! /s

Q: Are there real people in your book? I think "x" character is really this person from real life.

I don't know why you would think that. My story is about animals, not people.

Weird. Well, death of the author I guess.

Q: Has this been published?

Nope! I queried a bunch of agents last summer, and I was rightly rejected. Since then, I had it professionally evaluated on Reedsy and worked with a local writing professor. The story and writing are much tighter. I have restarted the querying process, which is just brutal.

To be honest, querying reminds me of applying to medical school. I send off applications into a void, and I hope the void answers back.

Q: Are you going to publish it?

Yes! I was going the self-publishing route after all my rejections, but my Reedsy editor insisted I not give up on the traditional publishing process as of yet. If I don't get any bites, I will self-publish.

My high school friend Robbie--one of my beta readers--says he truly believes in this book, which is nice to hear.

Q: I wanna read it now!

Awesome! I am going to paste some sample chapters as well as other writings set in the Animalian universe on this website. Unfortunately, due to man's inhumanity to man, I have lots more stories to tell in this world.

Q: So when will it be out?

Soon. I call all times soon.

Q: Why did you write Animalia?

To inspire action. Not just awareness, but action. I want my readers to read this story and act. So they will see injustice and stand up against it. To recognize that marginalized people are still people with rights and dignity. To ensure that decisions are not just made by the powerful. To mobilize.

To leave this world better than we found it.

Q: How did you write this story?

Honestly, it feels like the universe wrote this story and I was just a conduit. The muse overtook me, and Animalia was born.

In February of 2025, appalled at the daily news, I knew I need to do something. I made a to do list that included normal things, like "Pick up sticks," "Buy a cannon," and "Fight tyranny."

I never did do any gardening, but Animalia is my attempt at fighting tyranny.

When I was active duty military, I kept my political opinions to myself, though I was cognizant of my oath to the United States Constitution. Seeing so much injustice daily, I needed to speak up. But I wasn't sure how.

Horrified, I just woke up one morning with the entire plot of Animalia fully formed. In an ADHD-inspired hyperfocused two months, I wrote Animalia.

Q: You said you're a doctor. Can you take a look at my toe?

In the words of the great Bartleby the scrivener, "I would prefer not to." But if you come to my ER I will.