Cosmos
Books will publish Chris Butler's ANY TIME NOW
in the near future.
Interview with the Author:
Where and when were you born and where did
you grow
up?
I was born in Nottingham, England in 1964.
I grew up in
nearby Melton Mowbray which is a small town. We lived
almost bordering on the school playing fields, so getting
to
school was never a problem. For its small size, Melton
has
a ridiculous (ie large) number of pubs. As such it is
highly
recommended.
Name some favourite books.
“Someone To Watch Over Me” by
Tricia Sullivan
“Voice Of The Fire” by Alan Moore
“Death Is A Lonely Business” by Ray Bradbury
“Inconstant Moon” by Larry Niven
“Lost Futures” by Lisa Tuttle
What were you like as a kid?
I did well academically. I watched a lot
of television,
listened to music as kids do. I read a lot of comic books.
Name some favourite short stories?
“Reasons To Be Cheerful” by Greg
Egan
“Where Does The Town Go At Night” by Tanith Lee
“Feedback” by Joe Haldaman
“Light Of Other Days” by Bob Shaw
“Unravelling The Thread” by Jean-Claude Dunyach
You went to University..
I did. I went to at Birmingham University
and graduated
with a BSc in Mathematics and Computer Science. Some
days I wish I had studied English Literature instead. But
there you go. I've been lucky enough to do both artistic
and technical things so I can’t complain. Since
graduating
I’ve been working in IT on a very wide variety of
projects.
Are there any other writers you
particularly like?
Oh yes, loads of them. Harlan Ellison,
Philip K Dick, Eric
Brown, Molly Brown, Gwyneth Jones, Sarah Singleton, the
list is endless. I’ve been fortunate enough to co-write
a
story with Sarah.
Where is home?
I live on the south coast of England. I
can see the sea
from my bedroom window. I’ve slowly made my way to
the coast having started off in the midlands. I've lived
here
since late 1998 and I love it.
Name some favourite films.
Blade Runner
2001: A Space Odyssey
Aliens
Unforgiven
Crimes & Misdemeanors
Casablanca
What do you do in the way of hobbies?
I play guitar. Not very well. I’m
interested in the arts
in all its forms. I’m a big movie-buff. I’ve
been doing a
lot of swimming lately. There’s always jobs to do at
home.
I think about decorating frequently but rarely actually
do
any. Same goes for gardening.
Name some favourite television programmes.
Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Twin Peaks
X-Files
Ally McBeal
Our Friends In The North
Apart from your novel, “Any Time Now,”
what else
have you had published?
“Albedo
One,” which is Ireland's foremost Speculative
Fiction magazine has printed a Science Fiction short
story,
“The Tyndall Effect,” in issue 22. And they
have accepted
another. Both stories are kind of downbeat and serious.
The short fiction in Albedo One is always wonderful so I
am thrilled to be appearing there.
“Living
In Her Shadow” is an oddball short story in issue
10 of “Enigmatic Tales.” It is a crime story
with a
supernatural twist. Or maybe it’s supernatural with
a
crime twist.
There's
also a fun SF short story called “Eating Pofghan”
at the online site for a magazine called “Threads.”
There
are other stories still looking for homes. Right now
I am hard at work on a new novel which is a wonderful
thing
to be doing.
Name
some favourite CDs.
“Lying
To The Moon & Other Stories” by Matraca Berg
“Blue Aconite” by Christine Collister
“Somersault” by Helen Watson
“Nine Objects Of Desire” by Suzanne Vega
“Recurring Dream” by Crowded House
What
makes a good story?
People
just need to be able to relate to it. That’s a
bigger problem than it may seem when you’re writing
Science Fiction. You have to work much harder to bring
the reader in because the world you are showing them
is a strange place. The most amazing gosh-wow ideas
count for nothing if the reader cannot see the relevance.
My aim is to write stories that are exciting and relevant
at the same time. And of course you have to have great
dialogue and prose that zings off the page. I believe in
setting my sights high!
Is there
anything else you would like to say?
I am
incapable of ignoring e-mails. So if you want to
talk to me it is very easy. The address is:
chris@pofghan.freeserve.co.uk
And
please buy multiple copies of my book.
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