Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a family physician with a B.Sc. in Biology and an M.Sc. in Neurophysiology. I have been reading science fiction since Grade Two, when I was given a copy of A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle by the librarian. I have been in love with the genre ever since. I have published four books: Welcome to the Madhouse, Genesis, Bud by the Grace of God, and soon to be released in April, Amazing Grace. The books are all about a medical space station in the distant future and looks at war from the casualty and doctor side of things.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My upcoming new release is called Amazing Grace and it sees the heroine of the story really kick butt as she helps save everyone on the medical space station from the outbreak of a terrible biological weapon. The book talks about religious fanaticism and the insanity around doctrine that pushes people to kill others in the name of religion. It also focuses on prejudice, injustice, and intolerance, illustrating how harmful these beliefs are in our society. My goal is to focus on our present-day issues but extrapolate them forward into the future, where I can present certain themes in a futuristic setting.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I write whenever I can get a chance, whether it be in the middle of the night, between operations, or battling insomnia.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I have been influenced by many of the science fiction greats and there is a long list! Dune by Frank Herbert and Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien have to be at the top. Then Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny, The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula LeGuin, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov, The Book of the Long Sun by Gene Wolfe, Neuromancer by William Gibson, Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson, anything by Terry Pratchett, The Worthing Saga by Orson Scott Card, The Once and Future King by T.S. White, To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis, When Late the Sweet Birds Sang by Kate Wilhelm, Hyperion by Dan Simmons, Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan. So many authors! So many books!
What are you working on now?
I am doing the final edit on a YA novel titled HIRO’S HARDSHIP about two young boys stranded on a pleasure planet and how they save all the lost children on this terrible world.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I use everything: email list, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon ads, joint promotions with other authors. I am part of the Sci-Fi Roundtable on Facebook where authors help other authors.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
If you have already written a book, hire a professional editor and take their advice about fixing your book, no matter how painful it is. Make the corrections. Do the rewrite. If you want to learn to be a writer, take some writing courses. Always be open to advice and criticism. But most important of all, Finish what you start. Finish the book.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Show, don’t tell. Have your reader see, hear, smell, taste, feel, your setting. Have your reader walk inside your skin as you wear your character. If you don’t feel it, they won’t.
What are you reading now?
I am reading a book by an indie author called Necrotic City by Leland Lydecker.
What’s next for you as a writer?
The Grace Lord Series has six books planned. I am also launching my YA science fiction book, Hiro’s Hardship. I have a dragon fantasy almost completed as well, which I hope to publish in the near future.
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?
They would have to be really long books! So, Winston Churchill’s six volume The Second World War, Edward Gibbon’s eight volume The History of the Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, Gene Wolfe’s five volume Book of the Long Sun, and Dan Simmons four volume The Hyperion Saga. So cruel! Only four books.
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