Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a Classics graduate from Trinity College, Cambridge and had a successful career in the insurance industry. I co-authored two books on public sector risk management which were adopted by the Institute of Risk Management as their standard text books.
Since retiring I have had the opportunity to develop his interests, mainly reading, writing and thinking or, as my wife puts it, locking myself away in my office for a few hours a day. In particular I have been blogging and writing in my tongue-in-cheek, irreverent style about the quirks, idiocies and idiosyncrasies of life, both modern and ancient. My latest book, Fifty Clever Bastards, reflects this change in direction.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called Fifty Clever Bastards. I have always been fascinated by inventors and Fifty Clever Bastards is my paean to human ingenuity and a celebration of those who came unstuck in some way.
Have you ever stopped to wonder who invented the magnetic strip and PIN on your credit card, the ATM, the computer mouse, the conference call facility on your office phone, the telephone – all things that we take for granted as we go about our daily life? Have you assumed that their light-bulb moment opened up the path to untold fame and fortune?
The ability to spot a problem and develop a solution is a truly wonderful and awe-inspiring gift but for many inventors that is the easy bit. In Fifty Clever Bastards I shine the spotlight on 50 individuals who in their different ways made a major contribution to the way we live our life today.
The inventor’s lot is not always a happy one. When you are pushing at the barriers of human knowledge and technology, things can go disastrously wrong. If your invention doesn’t kill you – and in these pages you will find some whose demise was caused by their inventions – you may not profit from your endeavours either because somebody rips you off or you haven’t the financial resources to make it commercially available. Sometimes your invention is just so game-changing that out of a spirit of philanthropy you give it gratis for humanity to enjoy.
Each brief, slightly tongue-in-cheek pen picture concentrates as much on what happened after they hit upon their idea as what the idea was itself. After all, that is the more interesting part. Within the book you will find aviators from the first millennium CE, pioneers of transportation from bicycles and submarines to aeroplane trains, inventors of the zip, light bulb and the match. You will find that many who took the acclamation for an invention, weren’t the ones who came up with the idea in the first place. Life can be cruel sometimes.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Early morning and plenty of caffeine
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I wouldn’t say I have any specifically direct influences but I like pithy, witty, opinionated writing. I read a lot and along the way I’m sure lots of influences have lodged subconsciously in my brain.
What are you working on now?
I am working on a book, provisionally called Fifty Curious Questions, which seeks to answer some of those nagging questions that sometimes strike us and we have either just assumed we know the answer or haven’t had the time to find out.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Word of mouth and social media
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Be brave and follow your dreams
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Never be afraid to make your own mistakes
What are you reading now?
Purity by Jonathan Franzen
What’s next for you as a writer?
To extend my range of subject matter and to write more succinctly and wittily
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?
My favourite books are Elizabeth Gaskell’s North and South and George Eliot’s Middlemarch so they would have to come and because of their size would allow me to while away many hours. I also love Catch 22, the best book about World War 2.
Author Websites and Profiles
Martin Fone Website
Martin Fone Amazon Profile
Martin Fone’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Twitter Account