Exciting, engrossing, engaging and surprising: prolific UK writer Richard Dee and all his works can be described with these words. From life as a master mariner and Thames Estuary pilot to baking organic bread and writing sci-fi and steam punk, Richard Dee is one interesting man. In this post we’re going to hear a little about his process, and a bit more about what drives him. I’m so pleased to speak with Richard in today’s Last Word of the Week.
LWOTW: Welcome, Richard Dee! Do you remember when you wrote your first story?
Richard: In 1979, I wrote a short story about a farm in space. It eventually turned into my first novel; Freefall, in 2011-13. I guess that life got in the way there.
That’s quite a journey! Persistence and hanging onto the writing dream are very important, I think. Tell me, what do you think of dreams, imagination, and planning?
A lot of my stories came from dreams. They still do, my upcoming adventure Life and Other Dreams is based on the possibility that our dreams may just be real.
I see all my stories develop, like watching a film in my head. I can rewind, and I can slow the playback to watch the story unfold slowly, but I can never fast forward to the end.
Because of that, I don’t bother trying to plan, I just type what I see and let the characters move my fingers around the keys. The ending will be as much of a surprise to you as it was to me!
That’s a wonderful method – quite like the visitation of a muse. You’re obviously a born writer. What’s the highlight of your writing career so far?
Fame and fortune has sadly eluded me so far! My highlight is getting a good review from someone I’ve never met. And a royalty payment.
Good reviews are gold, aren’t they? Great to get – but I’m sure the fame and fortune would be nice too. What are you most busy with at the moment?
Developing an online course in world building.
Encouraging struggling writers with my Showcase series of blog posts, where I give new and Indie authors a platform.
Writing sequels, prequels, spin-offs and new work.
That’s a lot to be getting on with. Well done you! If you could say one thing to aspiring writers, what would it be?
Get the words down somewhere and more will flow. You can’t do much with great ideas if they stay in your head.
Excellent advice! And finally – the Last Word of The Week: What’s your favourite colour?
Red
Richard’s website is at richarddeescifi.co.uk. Head over there to see what he gets up to, click the FREE STUFF tab or the PORTFOLIO tab to get all the details about Richard’s work and pick up a free novel or short story.
Richard is on Facebook at RichardDeeAuthor and Twitter at Richard Dee Sci-Fi
Thanks for hosting me on your blog.
A lovely feature for Richard. 🙂