What are some early childhood experiences you had that really shaped the way you are today?
Spent a lot of time self educating by reading both fiction and non-fiction books. I realised I was better at self-learning rather than being taught.
What was your childhood ambition?
To be superman or make comic books.
What are some of the greatest books you've ever read?
Dune series. H.G. Wells sf books. Jules Verne books. The Abyss.
Do you remember the first story you ever wrote and where you wrote it (in an old notebook, crumpled piece of paper, on a laptop, etc)
A long story involving my school friends and us all exploring a mysterious sink hole. A horror. Several exercise books.
How much time does it take in researching while producing science-related educational videos?
More than most people think.
How did you come up with the first line in the book, Ripples In The Rift?
I imagined a beautiful woman (Eve in the paradise garden of Eden), from biblical fable.
What is a life hack that you think everybody should know?
When scared, do not step back. Step forward and face the fear.
Why do people not pursue their book-writing dreams?
They think they can't do it and it won't be published if they did do it.
Catanda is such a unique character name. How did you come up with it?
I like the three hard consonants as it makes the owner sound alien and bad.
What is good advice for teenagers today who want to make and direct movies?
Don't go to film school. Buy an slr camera which can shoot movies and ask your friends if they will star in the first one. You'll learn fast and spent the money you will have wasted on a course on equipment so you get going right away.
What do you do personally to improve your writing and why does it work?
I write the story as if it flowed through me from the quantum reality creating through me.
Months are spent then doing a vast editing job so it reads grammatically correct. I write the story itself rapidly as it writes itself like a movie playing through my head.
What 'cinema sin' is the most irritating, that filmmakers need to stop committing immediately?
Trying to hide nudity. Naked bodies are not porn and when people get out of a shower, they are naked. Movie makers are too bothered to not upset people and are worried about a film getting a high age rated certificate and thus possibly less audience profit. The instantly more to a head shot making you realise why and breaking the spell of the story/film.
What should every aspiring writer know about writing?
It allows you to turn off reality and living in your own creation for a while. Often, the more stress you are under, the more creative you can be. I have an end of life illness and I was able to write Ripples In The Rift to help me ease the coming to terms with that brutal truth that my life is running out and my health is failing. An old tree produces the most abundant fruit in the final years before dying. I wanted to be like that type of tree as a human so I'm producing non-stop now: books and making films. So, don't think 'I'll write my book when I am more settled'. Write it when you are in angst and life is stressful.
What sort of advice do you have for any novice writers out there?
Try to learn about punctuation and grammar. Typos, grammatical errors like putting a coma after so when the following clause is not an independent one shows you have not learned simple sentence construction. A learned person will keep tripping over your errors and lose interest in your story. Grammar checking software is just not good enough to rely on. They help a bit. You need to do the rest.
Finally, how has AllAuthor helped you with the promotion of your books? Would you recommend this platform to your author friends?
They have helped to get me more interest. Yes, I would recommend them.
