Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Geoff Nelder has a wife, two grown-up kids, and lives in rural England within an easy cycle ride of the Welsh mountains.
Publications include several non-fiction books on climate reflecting his other persona as a Fellow of the Royal Meteorological Society; over 50 published short stories in various magazines and anthologies; thriller, humour, science fiction, and fantasy novels. He’s been a fiction judge on several occasions, and has co-written a guide on winning short story competitions coming out soon. A former teacher for 30 years, Geoff is now a freelance editor.
Publications: Humorous thriller Escaping Reality
Award-winning science fiction mystery with hot-blooded heroine, Exit, Pursued by a Bee
Another thriller, Hot Air, was first published in 2010 after receiving an Award d’Or from an Arts Academy in the Netherlands now published by Adventure Books of Seattle
A science fiction trilogy, ARIA with an original premise is published by LL-Publications.
An urban and historical magic realism fantasy, Xaghra’s Revenge, is to be published soon.
Having had 84 short stories published, Geoff was chosen to be the short fiction judge for the Whittaker Prize, 2009.
Geoff is an editor at Adventure Books of Seattle, and is a freelance editor.
Geoff’s website: geoffnelder.com
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
ARIA: Left Luggage is the name. “Luggage” is left in orbit, brought to a NASA base and opened. A virus is released, which causes the spread of incurable infectious amnesia. There is no such disease – thank goodness, but think of the ramifications if it existed. People forgetting everything in their life backwards by a year’s worth per week. Soon everyone affected forget where they live, work, who they married! Children forget how to read, speak and eat. A small group realize what’s happening and isolate themselves. Can they keep safe, find out how it all happened and maybe seek revenge on the perpetrators?
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
The idea for ARIA: Left Luggage came to me while riding a bike up a steep Welsh hill. That’s what I do. I think the effort pushes fresh oxygen into the blood in my brain making me have lateral thinking ideas.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I enjoy the science fiction of the greats but also contemporary writers such as China Mieville and M John Harrison. Also of humorous writers such as Tibor Fischer – his The Thought Gang made me want to write novels even though I was a busy teacher at the time. My style has been polished, inspired by the craft leaders such as Julian Barnes.
What are you working on now?
Xaghra’s Revenge is a historical fantasy employing magic realism to put fiction into a fact-based event. That event? In 1551 pirates abducted the entire population of the Mediterranean island of Gozo. All those souls cry out for revenge and that’s what happens in Xaghra’s Revenge.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use twitter and facebook to promote my books. Another method is to write many short stories for magazines and anthologies. If readers like my stories they go to the links for my novels or look me up on my website at http://geoffnelder.com
I’ve now had 85 stories published.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
My main advice is to join a writing group, not a happy-clappy club but a circle who will seriously critique your work and not afraid to point out you’ve not used colour, smell or too many -ly adverbs.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Network, network, network.
This often means attending Cons, so get there!
What are you reading now?
I belong to a science fiction and fantasy book group here in Chester, UK. I’ve just finished Rabbit Back Literature Society by Pasi Ilmari Jaaskelainen – a wonderful book.
What’s next for you as a writer?
A sequel to Xaghra’s Revenge is in my mind and I’m off to a writers’ retreat in Greece soon to outline the plot and characters.
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?
Ishiguro , Kazuo
The remains of the day – masterpiece of slow thoughtful life of a butler
Lem, Stanislaw
Tales of Pirx the pilot
brilliant SF
Miller, Walter
Canticle for Leibowitz. Post apocalyptic novice monk
and of course Ultimate Guide to Wilderness Living: Surviving with Nothing But Your Bare Hands and What You Find in the Woods Paperback – 28 Apr 2008
by John McPherson
Author Websites and Profiles
Geoff Nelder Website
Geoff Nelder Amazon Profile
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