Guest: Interview with RJ Astruc.
May. 12th, 2012 01:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
misslj_authorJoin me today in welcoming RJ Astruc to the blog. RJ, take it away!
~***~
1. What made you want to be an author?
I’m not sure, but I never wanted to be anything else.
2. Are there any recurring themes in your books?
Definitely. My most common theme is the use of masks. I’m obsessed with masks, both real and metaphorical. Perhaps it’s because I’ve spent so much time on the internet; I’ve always enjoyed internet anonymity.
I also write about island nations and transient countries, if that can be considered a theme. Both my parents are from island nations and I’ve lived on islands my whole life – from England to Ireland to Australia and now New Zealand.
3. What comes first when you're writing, the characters or the plot?
The characters. They wander aimlessly in my head until I find the right plot for them to latch onto. Sometimes they appear in multiple worlds at once.
4. What is the perfect writing environment for you to get the most done in one sitting?
In complete silence, in bed, with my silver Vaio. (Not to be confused with my pink Vaio or my green Vaio. I may have a bit of a Sony addiction.)
5. What genres do you prefer to read and to write?
I don’t read much, to be honest. But if I had to pick a genre, I’d go with Agatha Christie-style murder mysteries. That, or adventure novels set in Africa like the Alan Quatermain novels.
Genres I like writing are science fiction and mystery.
6. Is there a genre that you'd like to write but haven't yet?
I’d like to write a traditional Agatha Christie style murder mystery one day.
7. How do you come up with titles for your work?
I’m not sure. Some I happen across – for example, the title of my science fiction novel, Harmonica + Gig comes from characters in an online game I played. Street of Two Doors is from a street I visited while on holiday in France. Others like Clockworld – I’ve got no idea.
8. Do you read reviews of your work? If so, do you pay any attention to them, or let them influence your writing?
I try not to let them influence me, but sometimes I want to write them annoyed letters saying, “YOU’RE SO WRONG, YOU FOOL!” Others I think are far, far too generous. It’s such a split that I don’t think I could really take one opinion above the other.
9. "Clockworld" is a Young Adult sci-fi/fantasy that deals with things such as sexual identity and drug use, do you think these themes should be explored more in YA fiction? Would you write another YA novel in the "Clockworld" universe or with those themes?
I don’t know if I could say these things should be explored – if the market wants them, I guess. I’d rather read books about cool stuff happening, and that cool stuff involves sexual identity and drug use, then there you go.
I’ve written several short stories using the same characters, often transplanted into different worlds. I’m ridiculously fond of Aubrey (one of the main characters in Clockworld), and his strangely naïve way of moving through life. I’ve really got to write more about him, I think.
10. Conversely, "Harmonica and Gig" is a cyberpunk story for adults, which has Heroes and Heroines of Colour. Would you write another novel featuring these particular characters in the H&G universe?
A sequel novella to Harmonica + Gig appeared in the magazine Abyss & Apex in 2006, and has been since reprinted in Kindle All Stars: Resistance Front (a charity anthology) in 2011. But I don’t think they’ll appear in anything else - they’ve gone as far as they can go as characters. I don’t really consider any of my characters characters of colour.
11. How long did it take you to get from manuscript to print for H&G and "Clockworld"? Have you been pleased with the receptions for these novels?
Harmonica + Gig I wrote in 2002. It was published by a terrible small press that went out of business almost immediately in 2007 or so. Unfortunately they’d taken my first publishing rights – and also butchered my manuscript in the process. I was very lucky to be republished by Dragonfall Press in 2011, who made only very minimal changes to the original first draft I’d written in 2002.
Clockworld I wrote in 2010/2011, and first appeared as a serial in a really lovely little online magazine called Wilde Oats. I’ve since reprinted it myself as an experiment in self publishing. Again, Clockworld is a first draft with some minor editing changes. I tend to get things absolutely right the first time.
I’ve been very pleased with the reception (and sales!) of Harmonica + Gig. Clockworld hasn’t been out for long as a whole novella, rather than a serial, so I’m still waiting to see how it goes.
12. Does any of your own life experience find its way into the narrative of any of your work? If so, what's an example? If not, do you think it might in the future?
I didn’t think so until my husband pointed out that no matter their current circumstance, all my characters are from highly privileged, upper-class or upper middle class households. Clockworld is about a bunch of posh, private school educated idiots and I guess their stupidity reflects my experiences pretty well. Never went to another planet, though.
13. What are your writing goals for the rest of 2012?
I’m finishing up all the stories I’ve had lying about on my hard drive for the past five years.
14. Which of your books was the easiest to write and which is your favourite?
I loved writing Clockworld. I wrote it to fit a deadline for the magazine, and the story just went off on a wild tangent as I was writing it under pressure. It was very organic, very fun, very cathartic.
15. And finally, my trademark interview end question - if you were to come back as a plant in your next life, what plant would you be and why?
I have some lucky bamboo on my balcony, and I love it, it’s so cool and curly. So that’s what I’d go for. I’m going to pretend, of course, that I’d grow that way naturally, and not have to suffer lots of splinting and twisting in the growing process…
Harmonica and Gig.
When a territory engineer dies in suspicious circumstances, three qverse experts are brought in to investigate. Initially the three hacks choose to work separately on the case, but as they continue their investigations they discover clues leading to some of the most powerful figures in the qverse. Soon they realise they are more than just investigating the crime, they are part of it, and part of an even greater scheme to unbalance the long established foundations of the qverse itself.
Buy it: Here.
RJ Astruc is an Irish-African author who currently lives New Zealand. Her fiction has appeared in Strange Horizons, Abyss and Apex, Andromeda Spaceways and Aurealis, amongst many others. She wrote at least one of her novels while totally smashed on a crazy bender. RJ writes across almost all genres of fiction, and often mushes them together like a delicious genre pie.
She is married to a man with more than the allotted number of nipples and has a son named after a cartoon cat.
RJ can be found at the following locations:
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/astruc
Blog & Site: http://www.rachelastruc.com/
Books: http://www.rachelastruc.com/bibliography/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2935612.R_J_Astruc
1. What made you want to be an author?
I’m not sure, but I never wanted to be anything else.
2. Are there any recurring themes in your books?
Definitely. My most common theme is the use of masks. I’m obsessed with masks, both real and metaphorical. Perhaps it’s because I’ve spent so much time on the internet; I’ve always enjoyed internet anonymity.
I also write about island nations and transient countries, if that can be considered a theme. Both my parents are from island nations and I’ve lived on islands my whole life – from England to Ireland to Australia and now New Zealand.
3. What comes first when you're writing, the characters or the plot?
The characters. They wander aimlessly in my head until I find the right plot for them to latch onto. Sometimes they appear in multiple worlds at once.
4. What is the perfect writing environment for you to get the most done in one sitting?
In complete silence, in bed, with my silver Vaio. (Not to be confused with my pink Vaio or my green Vaio. I may have a bit of a Sony addiction.)
5. What genres do you prefer to read and to write?
I don’t read much, to be honest. But if I had to pick a genre, I’d go with Agatha Christie-style murder mysteries. That, or adventure novels set in Africa like the Alan Quatermain novels.
Genres I like writing are science fiction and mystery.
6. Is there a genre that you'd like to write but haven't yet?
I’d like to write a traditional Agatha Christie style murder mystery one day.
7. How do you come up with titles for your work?
I’m not sure. Some I happen across – for example, the title of my science fiction novel, Harmonica + Gig comes from characters in an online game I played. Street of Two Doors is from a street I visited while on holiday in France. Others like Clockworld – I’ve got no idea.
8. Do you read reviews of your work? If so, do you pay any attention to them, or let them influence your writing?
I try not to let them influence me, but sometimes I want to write them annoyed letters saying, “YOU’RE SO WRONG, YOU FOOL!” Others I think are far, far too generous. It’s such a split that I don’t think I could really take one opinion above the other.
9. "Clockworld" is a Young Adult sci-fi/fantasy that deals with things such as sexual identity and drug use, do you think these themes should be explored more in YA fiction? Would you write another YA novel in the "Clockworld" universe or with those themes?
I don’t know if I could say these things should be explored – if the market wants them, I guess. I’d rather read books about cool stuff happening, and that cool stuff involves sexual identity and drug use, then there you go.
I’ve written several short stories using the same characters, often transplanted into different worlds. I’m ridiculously fond of Aubrey (one of the main characters in Clockworld), and his strangely naïve way of moving through life. I’ve really got to write more about him, I think.
10. Conversely, "Harmonica and Gig" is a cyberpunk story for adults, which has Heroes and Heroines of Colour. Would you write another novel featuring these particular characters in the H&G universe?
A sequel novella to Harmonica + Gig appeared in the magazine Abyss & Apex in 2006, and has been since reprinted in Kindle All Stars: Resistance Front (a charity anthology) in 2011. But I don’t think they’ll appear in anything else - they’ve gone as far as they can go as characters. I don’t really consider any of my characters characters of colour.
11. How long did it take you to get from manuscript to print for H&G and "Clockworld"? Have you been pleased with the receptions for these novels?
Harmonica + Gig I wrote in 2002. It was published by a terrible small press that went out of business almost immediately in 2007 or so. Unfortunately they’d taken my first publishing rights – and also butchered my manuscript in the process. I was very lucky to be republished by Dragonfall Press in 2011, who made only very minimal changes to the original first draft I’d written in 2002.
Clockworld I wrote in 2010/2011, and first appeared as a serial in a really lovely little online magazine called Wilde Oats. I’ve since reprinted it myself as an experiment in self publishing. Again, Clockworld is a first draft with some minor editing changes. I tend to get things absolutely right the first time.
I’ve been very pleased with the reception (and sales!) of Harmonica + Gig. Clockworld hasn’t been out for long as a whole novella, rather than a serial, so I’m still waiting to see how it goes.
12. Does any of your own life experience find its way into the narrative of any of your work? If so, what's an example? If not, do you think it might in the future?
I didn’t think so until my husband pointed out that no matter their current circumstance, all my characters are from highly privileged, upper-class or upper middle class households. Clockworld is about a bunch of posh, private school educated idiots and I guess their stupidity reflects my experiences pretty well. Never went to another planet, though.
13. What are your writing goals for the rest of 2012?
I’m finishing up all the stories I’ve had lying about on my hard drive for the past five years.
14. Which of your books was the easiest to write and which is your favourite?
I loved writing Clockworld. I wrote it to fit a deadline for the magazine, and the story just went off on a wild tangent as I was writing it under pressure. It was very organic, very fun, very cathartic.
15. And finally, my trademark interview end question - if you were to come back as a plant in your next life, what plant would you be and why?
I have some lucky bamboo on my balcony, and I love it, it’s so cool and curly. So that’s what I’d go for. I’m going to pretend, of course, that I’d grow that way naturally, and not have to suffer lots of splinting and twisting in the growing process…
Harmonica and Gig.When a territory engineer dies in suspicious circumstances, three qverse experts are brought in to investigate. Initially the three hacks choose to work separately on the case, but as they continue their investigations they discover clues leading to some of the most powerful figures in the qverse. Soon they realise they are more than just investigating the crime, they are part of it, and part of an even greater scheme to unbalance the long established foundations of the qverse itself.
Buy it: Here.
RJ Astruc is an Irish-African author who currently lives New Zealand. Her fiction has appeared in Strange Horizons, Abyss and Apex, Andromeda Spaceways and Aurealis, amongst many others. She wrote at least one of her novels while totally smashed on a crazy bender. RJ writes across almost all genres of fiction, and often mushes them together like a delicious genre pie.
She is married to a man with more than the allotted number of nipples and has a son named after a cartoon cat.
RJ can be found at the following locations:
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/astruc
Blog & Site: http://www.rachelastruc.com/
Books: http://www.rachelastruc.com/bibliography/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2935612.R_J_Astruc
