Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am currently studying Engineering at Bristol University which ordinarily alongside sport and socializing would keep me up to my neck in work. But, in these COVID-19 times, without my normal activities and routines and no job opportunities, I have had plenty of time on my hands so decided that instead of spending an obscene amount of time in front of Netflix, I would get to work pursuing a passion I had never had the time to do before so I wrote Arcane I, and They Took The Midnight Train Going Anywhere (although I did still manage to spend a little too much time in front of the TV!)
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
They Took The Midnight Train Going Anywhere: Unsurprisingly to anyone that has heard it, this book was inspired by the song ‘Don’t stop believin’ by Journey, although during writing, it veered wildly off the original course I had planned for it. Iris is headstrong, willful and woefully different from the person that her parents, friends and teachers insist she is. Jory is critical, intelligent and woefully different from the person that his dad and coach insist he should be. Iris’ imagination is sparked on the train when she meets a boy her own age dressed for a life she has always desired but barely let herself envisage. Jory is enraptured by the maze of mathematics and the quest to find a route to the middle where lies ‘the most, powerful, simple phenomenon’. Both must decide whether to follow their dreams or the voices of those around them.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know how unusual it is but I have a great tendency to spend too long planning a scene or section only to start writing it and ignore all that I have planned entirely!
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is definitely one that made me determined to be an author, the way that it added depth to such a range of topics will forever be an aspiration for me to achieve with my readers. Although, like most people my age, I suppose my interest in reading and later on writing first came from the Harry Potter series (mainstream as it is to admit it).
What are you working on now?
Currently, I am working on two sequels; Arcane II (The King’s Whisperer) and They Took The Midnight Train Going Anywhere (pt.2).
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I haven’t had the chance to try many yet, but my fingers are crossed that it will be this one!
Do you have any advice for new authors?
If you ever finish a manuscript (a challenge in itself) and upon reading it back think that it doesn’t flow or make any sense and you will have to start again, tell yourself to stop being dramatic, take a break and then come back to it, most of the work is already done, the living writing has been created, all you have to do now is put it in a suit.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
I don’t really remember any particular lines but it will have been something specific on how to do something better for other people, rather than one of the millions of permutations of simply ‘be nice’.
What are you reading now?
‘The Iliad’ as translated by Martin Hammond, I am really enjoying working my way through many of the Classics that have managed to survive and thrive right up to the modern day.
What’s next for you as a writer?
The plan is to finish off Arcane II and They Took The Midnight Train Going Anywhere (pt.2) before taking some time off of writing to focus on reading and stop me getting too stagnant or repetitive.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Pride and Prejudice x4 as it would probably give me enough material to make a small house out of!
Author Websites and Profiles
Charlie Johnson Website
Charlie Johnson Amazon Profile