Gordon Byron Author Bio:
Gordon Byron is a world traveler (who has lived in North America, Asia and Europe), teacher, earth science nut and outdoors person with a background in geological sciences, market trading and fiction writing. He became interested in fiction writing and poetry at age nine, science fiction in grade school and horror stories in high school but now focuses primarily on creating characters involved in some form of moral/ existential struggle that forces them to overcome personal weaknesses or past grievances.
He loves reading literary fiction, classics, science fiction and romantic comedies but lately occupies most of his time by researching new topics that might be interesting to himself, current and future readers. He attempts to connect with his readers through dynamic and accessible characters others can sympathize with and grow to love and emulate. His primary motivation for writing is to entertain and amuse.
He wrote The Superspecies series with the intent of presenting the possibility of a group of animals becoming as or more intelligent than human beings through genetic engineering and modification. A radical change that forces humans to reevaluate their status as rulers of the planet, putting them in the position of deciding whether to defend (or share) their place with an emerging species.
What inspires you to write?
Many things inspire me to write but mostly exploring the human condition and the many problems/ challenges of life that must be dealt with in high-stress situations. I try to challenge my characters and readers with difficult situations that must be confronted with the correct application of personal ethics and wise principles in order to reduce life and survival to their essentials and, in so doing, get closer to the meaning and purpose of life.
Tell us about your writing process.
I switch back and forth between both types. I try to let the story guide me to where it wants to go. Some stories should be character-driven by their very nature (requiring more spontaneous "pantsing") and others plot-driven (requiring a detailed outline) because that is how the story begs to be told. I believe stories need to be rolled out in a certain way to make them complete in the reader’s mind and to tell them correctly, doing justice to them in other words. The author isn’t in total control of the process (nor should he/ she try to be) because the story must tell itself with all the accompanying and supporting details, ideas and concepts.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I listen AND talk to my characters. They are living, breathing beings to me not just one-dimensional characters on a page. I treat each character that way. I am not in control of them and they are not in control of me. It is a reciprocal relationship and I try to be very sympathetic and permissive toward my characters since they are their own people (not something under my complete control). The lines of communication between me (the author) and them (characters existing in the universal consciousness) are always open and in constant flux.
Who are your favorite authors?
I love to read and reread Henry James, Joseph Conrad, Sinclair Lewis, William Faulkner, Robert Ludlum and James Rollins. I love The Europeans, The Ambassadors, Washington Square and Roderick Hudson by Henry James, Victory by Joseph Conrad, Babbitt and Main Street by Sinclair Lewis and Sanctuary and The Unvanquished by William Faulkner.
What genres do you write?
I write in two separate genre profiles since I have two separate series: The Superspecies (under my pen name Gordon Byron) is in the science fiction/ technothriller/ genetics engineering genre. Young Love, Old Lore (under my pen name Timothy Byron) is in the young adult fiction/ romance/ literary fiction genre.
How did you choose the genre(s) you write?
The genres I write in are chosen on the basis that they are areas of the human condition that interest me enough to write about them. They are arenas I love to inhabit and create worlds within as well as developing human stories that impact people on all levels of their own personal experience.
What formats are your books in?
eBook, Print
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All information is provided by the author and is presented as it was submitted so you the reader get to hear the author’s own “voice” in their interview.
