Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have written two novels – only one has been self-published on Amazon. I work in the environmental sector, focusing on air quality and climate change. My first attempt at creative writing was during my student days in London when I started writing lyrics for my band. After that I co-wrote a play for the Players Playwrights which was put on for one night in London’s Phoenix theatre. Writing novels is where my heart lies.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
We Float Upon a Painted Sea. From time to time the research I do for my day job has scared the life out of me, but I believe there is hope if people start to wake up to what is happening in the world. I would actually find no satisfaction or remotely feel smug if the world descended into the chaos described in my book! But it was inspired by a concern over the future of the human race on this planet and a mistrust of the governments that lead us in the west. It is not however, a tedious moral lecture but an science fiction yarn which I believe has a lot of intrigue and humor in it.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
When create a new character, who is from another part of the UK or America, I try out the accent while pulling a face I imagine they would be making at the time. My wife (who also designed my front cover) shakes her head in disbelief when she witnesses this odd behavior.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Onyx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
Iain Banks
Saul Bellow
George Orwell
Lanark by Alasdair Gray
Franz Kafka
Cormac McCarthy
What are you working on now?
A horror novel set in St Petersburg, Russia called the Upstanding.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
This is only the second time I have promoted my book, and my first promotion with the Awsomegang, but I have found Facebook helpful.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Never listen to people advising you what you should write for the sole purpose of selling – writing should come from within yourself and ignore the “only write what you know” crowd. This to me limits the imagination.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t just write what you know, use your imagination!
What are you reading now?
Louise Welsh – The Cutting Room
What’s next for you as a writer?
Trying to undertake the near impossible task of promoting my book while sustaining a day job and a demanding young family and two greedy guinea pigs.
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?
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
The SAS Survival Handbook
The Home Distillers Workbook by Jeff King (sorry couldn’t help that!)
Author Websites and Profiles
Christopher Connor Amazon Profile
Christopher Connor’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account