On 26th May I spoke with acclaimed author, Christian Cameron about A Time for Swords, writing process, research, inspiration, and lots more. We were hosted by Book People, the largest independent bookshop in Texas.
Watch the talk on Book People's Facebook page on the following link:
https://facebook.com/watch/live/?v=2518648854947990&ref=watch_permalink
Intros start at about 5 minutes in. Christian and I start talking at about 8 minutes in.
Protector by Conn Iggulden
The Last Berserker: An action-packed Viking adventure by Angus DonaldIt has been quite a while since I have posted any author interviews, so I thought it was about time that I resurrected the format. It is with great pleasure that I welcome to the blog, author, screenwriter, playwright and fellow producer on The Serpent Sword TV series, Gregory (Greg) Stewart.
You have written screenplays, plays and novels. Which do you consider your true calling, or do you just think writing is writing? What do you most like and dislike about each art form?
I started out thinking I would write novels only. That was
my childhood ambition. And yet I had a late start after spending most of my
twenties going in a different direction and trying to get into the music biz.
Around the time I finished my first novel (which wasn’t any good), a friend
came to me with an idea for a film. I love film and thought why not try that
too. So, while I was writing my first novels – essentially learning how to
write fiction properly – I was also writing screenplays and learning how to do
that as well. Writing for TV was a natural progression from film. I only wrote
my first play last year, so that’s been more of a recent challenge. So yes, for
me it’s all became part of one calling, to write. But fiction and film/TV are quite
different disciplines and even though they share some common ground, I always saw
them as separate ambitions.
In terms of what I like and dislike – for fiction, my
favourite part is planning the story then later seeing or feeling the
characters come to life as you work through the draft. The writing part can be
the hardest, because of the time it takes and there’s always going to be a point
where you feel lost, or that it’s not working. When you have a first draft
there’s a certain euphoria, and as you read it it's fantastic to find the parts
that come together, but also disheartening when other parts don’t work to the
extent that there are going to be big rewrites. For screenwriting, the story
part is trickier, because there are so many more limits, but once the story is
locked in, the process is faster, and I don’t dislike any part of it. After
writing fiction, screenwriting often seems like a bit of a break. My favourite
part of screenwriting is the dialogue. I love trying to find the most interesting
and effective words for the characters to deliver.
Your newest novel is called Astatara. Please tell us a bit about it.
Astatara has a classic fantasy set-up - two teenage children fall into a mysterious orb of light and find themselves trapped in an unknown and hostile world. Gradually they discover a strange culture with a terrifying prophecy and some very nasty villains. Yet as they work through this, trying to understand where they are and how they might get back home, the story also follows a man who in our world, is trying to unravel the mystery of the orb. This journey becomes a terrible obsession for him with dreadful consequences for lots of people around him. Eventually, the two stories connect, and the mystery of the orb is finally revealed. On the one hand it’s hopefully an exciting and gripping fantasy adventure – I had in mind a lot of Victorian era adventure stories by writers, such as Jules Verne or Conan Doyle – but on the other hand it’s also a darker story about obsession, rivalry, Communist Russia, familial disintegration and reunion. The scope of it is quite ambitious! Whether, I’ve completely succeeded or not, I don’t know.
Astatara is a standalone book. Wolf Head and its sequel, The
Strange Case of Sarah Wynter are part of the Trasis series. A novella, FerrisWheel is also part of that series as a side story. I have outlines that take me
up to book six and expect there’ll be a seventh after that. I have another
series on the starting blocks – The Devil’s Fairytale – which will be five
books. Most of that series is already written and I’m planning to publish the
first two of those books later this year.
Your novels don’t seem to conform to genres. Is that a
conscious decision?
Everything needs a label! Yes, its tricky for me to write in
clear cut genres. It’s definitely all speculative fiction – fantasy, horror,
sci fi – but there’s often some crime element to it as well. And I love
exploring history so if I can coincide the story with some past event that’s
always an attraction. If labels are needed – and I know they are – then I would
say both the Trasis and the Devil’s Fairytale series are fantasy horror.
Astatara is sci fi fantasy. Red Bunker – my giveaway novella for subscribers –
is sci fi horror.
What are you working on at the moment?
The Strange Case of Sarah Wynter is due to be published on 5th
March, so I’m doing final edits on that. Then obviously, there’s all the work
ongoing for The Serpent Sword adaptation too and hopefully we’ll be pitching
that to some power players soon. I’ve got another TV project that I’m in the
process of finding somebody to partner up with, and a film project that I’m
working on with an actor and producer which we’re hoping to get some
development funding for. Soon I’ll have to start planning the first Devil’s
Fairytale release and perhaps start work on the next Trasis novel – which is
going to be called The Vampire States of America.
What are your ambitions for your writing? What would
signify success for you?
The self-publishing is only just getting off the ground.
I’ve had some success with Wolf Head which has gone down well with readers,
which is very encouraging. But I need to build on that now. Try to get my head
above that parapet. There are so many writers out there and it’s a longer game
that I’ll have to keep working on. Ideally, I’d like to get picked up by a publisher.
For the film and TV work, it would be getting something on
screen. I’ve had some false starts – a feature film I wrote in 2017 is stuck in
the final stages of post-production due to money problems and another feature I
was commissioned to write in 2018 was cancelled just a few weeks before
filming. That’s quite hard to take when you put a lot into something that
should have significantly raised your profile. But it’s not uncommon in the
industry, so I can only hope I’ve paid my dues and that The Serpent Sword will
be the one to get out of the gate.
What writers, books and movies have had the biggest
influence on your work?
Growing up it was a lot of fantasy. Tolkien, CS Lewis, The
Belgariad by David Eddings, the Dragonlance books, Gemmell, Moorcock –
particularly Elric. Later, Stephen King became quite an influence, particularly
The Stand. Also, Tad Williams' Otherland series had a huge impact. It’s such a
great mash-up of sci-fi, fantasy, crime etc. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was
also a key book for me, and Victor Hugo’s Les Miserables. The scope and power
of that story is astonishing. Later again it was Paul Auster, Cormac McCarthy –
The Road particularly I think is one of the best novels ever written – and James
Ellroy. More recently I’ve become obsessed with William Trevor. I think his
books are perfect.
With films, I’ve seen so many that it’s difficult to
separate the influences from the escapism. In terms of early film experiences
that jolted me, it was the original Star Wars trilogy, Jaws and Alien. Beyond
that it’s an eclectic mix. I always loved the Hammer horror films and lots of
Hitchcock, Rear Window particularly. American Werewolf. The Good the Bad and
the Ugly. And perhaps less obviously, Olivier’s Richard III. But I suppose if
there was one that changed the way I looked at film it was Taxi Driver. I think
I was 21 when I saw it on VHS on a small TV in my bedroom, but it was such an
intense experience and it made me aware of screenwriting and directing and
acting combining to create this art form in a way that I’d never grasped
before.
What are the best and worst things about being a writer?
The creative side is all good, really. Storytelling is so
much fun and then having people enjoy and appreciate what you do is unbeatable.
The worst part is how difficult it is to break through.
What is the best book you've read in the last twelve
months?
Probably a tie between William Trevor’s Fools of Fortune and The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson. As I said before, I think William Trevor’s books are flawless. Fools of Fortune is a about a family caught up in the Irish war of independence and tells how that affects them and how they come to terms with it in later years. Hill House was a book which I felt I’d read before because it’s been adapted for the screen so many times, but I hadn’t, and it’s a great psychological horror. Jackson really gets into the splintering mindset of the lead character. Such elegant and effective writing. I’ll definitely be reading more of her books.
What is the best film or TV you've seen in the last
twelve months?
In between lockdowns I managed to go and see Mank at a local
cinema, which I thought was great. I love that kind of filmmaking, such precision,
detail and nuance. On TV I’ve started watching Steve McQueen’s Small Axe film series
and thought ‘Education’ was terrific. Also, I love Better Call Saul and that
most recent series was electric. I also very much enjoyed the second season of
the Mandolorian.
And now for the quick-fire questions:
Tea or coffee?
Herbal tea or water please.
Burger or hot dog?
Pizza.
Villain or hero?
Every good story needs both.
Beer or wine?
Wine at home. Beer when out.
Movie or TV series?
Movie usually.
Happy ending or tragedy?
I seem to write happy endings for my novels and tragic ones
for my screenplays.
In the car, audio book or music?
Audio book. Currently listening to The Lord of the Rings.
Thanks so much for answering my questions, Greg. Good luck with all the projects (especially The Serpent Sword!). ;-)
Connect with Greg at:
