GOD’S WAR: Interviu cu KAMERON HURLEY

VN. How you started writing? Why SF&F and not another genre of literature?

 KH. SF/F is the genre of possibilities. Joanna Russ once said that she wrote science fiction because it was the only genre that let her explore how things could be “really different.” I’m interested in who we are after we strip away everything else. Without our current cultures, our preconceptions, our current hang-ups and challenges, who would we be?

I enjoy creating wildly different places and exploring what types of people inhabit them.

 VN.  You are one of the most important writers in English sf&f is a way of life? What is so special about SF’s for you? By the time he entered SF in your life, you may remember?

 KH. Though I’d read some young adult novels that were certainly fantasy as a child, and was writing fantasy books at twelve, I didn’t really get into reading “adult” fantasy and science fiction until I was about fourteen. A friend of mine handed me a large brown paper bag full of books to read, all of them traditional fantasy novels. Among those was a copy of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time. I thought the book was pretty boring initially, and nearly put it down 50 pages in. But he told me to keep going. The book got a lot better, and I was hooked.

VN.  The novel God’s  War–made more furore, what inspired you to write? From what started spark?

 KH. I study a lot of political history – especially violent political history – and that’s led me to research a number of wars and conflicts across the world. I became especially interested in the history of conflict in Southern Africa, and that led me to research more about Rwanda, Namibia, and Darfur. I also became interested in the Middle East through research into ancient Assyria and Babylon. This led me to learn more about Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Saudi Arabia.

But much of my inspiration for the book actually came from old biblical stories and histories. There’s a book called Homicide in the Biblical World that makes mention of a “bel dame” – a person designated by a murder victim’s family to take revenge on the person who killed their family member. This idea really intrigued me, and I began thinking about what a world would be like that enabled and encouraged this type of character to exist.

 VN.  You have received this year’s Award FANSF from Roumenia for the novel GOD’S WAR, what feelings you had about the news?

KH. I was very pleased about it. One of the concerns I had with this book was that it would end up not being very widely read. It’s a strange book, with a wild setting and violent characters. It’s not for everyone. I did hope it would do better overseas, and I’m happy we’ve sold UK rights for the series so it can hopefully reach other European countries. I look forward to seeing if any other foreign publishers are interested. My hope is that we’ll see even more interest in the next year or so as more readers discover it.

Hurley

VN. What are your favorite sf books? But the authors?

KH. People who’ve read my work can probably guess that I’ve been influenced by a lot of the New Weird authors – people like Jeff VanderMeer, China Mieville, KJ Bishop, and others. But I’m also a fan of authors like Angela Carter, Joanna Russ, Tim Akers, Lauren Beukes, and Ian Tregillis. Genevieve Valentine’s first novel was also wonderful, and I look forward to reading more from her.

 VN.  What inspires you? Where do the ideas come? What motivates you to write? How do you build the characters?

KH. I’m inspired by all sorts of things. One of the reasons I got my academic degrees in history is because I like exploring other people’s stories. I often worry that many writers get their ideas from others writers instead of going straight to the source material. I think we can tell more powerful stories when they’re not just derivative of existing tropes and stereotypes. The same goes for character creation. I try very hard to create complex people with complex problems. A lot of the conflicts in my stories actually revolve around how the characters interact with one another and how they end up sabotaging their own interests as opposed to simple stories about good guys vs. bad guys. I pay a lot of attention to the internal character dynamics and try to throw together characters who really shouldn’t be together. It makes for instant conflict.

 VN.  For readers who don’t know what stories you’ve typed writings, where and when were published? What other stories have not been published and are protected from the public eye? What do you use now? Which of the stories is the most dear to you?

KH. I’ve written several stories for Strange Horizons Magazine and EscapePod and other, lesser known places. You can read or listen to them all online for free: http://www.kameronhurley.com/short-fiction/

My most popular story is The Women of Our Occupation, which was reprinted in Year’s Best SF 12. But my favorite story is a little-known one that came out from a magazine called Deep Outside SFFH. The story is called If Women Do Fall They Lie and you can read it here: http://www.deepoutside.com/Fiction/womenfall.shtml

 VN. What future plans do you have? What goodies we prepare in your „kitchen” secret?

KH. My third book, RAPTURE comes out in November. It’s the final volume in my Bel Dame Apocrypha series. After that, I have a really cool space opera called LEGION that I’m working on. It’s the story of two families battling for control over a legion of cancerous world-ships sent out to the end of known space. There are biotic witches, womb-tech, and massive space battles. Should be a lot of fun.

  VN. As a member of the world SF&F, how do you see the current trends of SF&F?

KH.It’s really hard to spot “trends,” I think. Especially because SF/F is so diverse. There’s still plenty of writing about gods, demons, and angels, and dark fantasy continues to be popular, especially with the popularity of George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice & Fire books. But honestly, I don’t really pay much attention to trends. I just write what I’d like to read and hope other people want to read it, too. If you start chasing trends, you’ll just be miserable. Life is too short to spend your life writing stories you don’t want to write just because you think they’re “popular.”

VN. What sf book you liked most? What book have you marked and which remain a symbol for you?

KH. Every book teaches me something different. I’m still very fond of Jeff VanderMeer’s Dradin in Love, and enjoyed Tim Akers’s Heart of Veridon and Genevieve Valentine’s Mechanique.

VN.  You won many prize what is most important to you?

KH. Awards are nice because they acknowledge how highly authors and fans regard your work. Everybody’s likes to know that people enjoy what they’re doing, especially if, up until that point, you haven’t sold many copies. I think all awards are equally cool, but at the end of the day I’m not really in this for awards. I write because I love creating and exploring new places with crazy people.

VN.  I know from own experience that I can let us take care of sf if you don’t have family sustain you tie your loved ones among the fans and sympathizers sf&f?

KH. My friends and family have always been great supporters of my work. My parents always told me they were fine with me being a writer, as long as I understood that I’d always be poor… They continue to be great fans. They talk about my books everywhere. They even leave them in doctors’ offices and hand them to waitstaff in restaurants. Friends have been wonderful as well – they’ll turn my books face out in bookstores and recommend them to others. I’ve been writing a long, long time, so I think that many of my longtime friends and old classmates are nearly as happy to see my books on shelves as I am.

VN. At the final small speech for readers and for your number 1 fan.

KH. Thanks for supporting my work! It’s fantastic that so many people have discovered it, and are passionate about sharing it with others. I can’t wait to show everybody what I’m working on next.

A relatat din fata tastaturii fanul de serviciu Voicu Nicu aka voicunike. Aceasta este prima versiune a interviului ,voi reveni si cu varianta tradusa dar si cu inca patru intrebari la care Kameron Hurley a binevoit sa raspunda. Pentru GOD’S WAR urmati acest link ,veti gasi lucruri interesante. See ya!

posted by voicunike