Friday, January 13, 2012

Interview With James Hutchings and a Giveaway

Where are you from?

I live in Melbourne, Australia.



When did you start writing?

Years ago I did a Bachelor of Arts majoring in creative writing and media, but I didn't do anything with it after graduating. I started writing again seriously in 2010.



Can you tell us something about yourself that we can't find anywhere else?

I have a third nipple. It's quite small, and actually looks like a birthmark (most people I've shown it too have said that's what it is). But it's an actual nipple.



Where is your favorite place to write?

I do most of my writing on the computer at home, but I don't have a problem writing somewhere else. I know some writers get very particular about this, and claim they can only write in one particular room, and it has to be on an old typewriter and so on, but I've never had that problem.



What do you like to do when your not writing?

My other main hobby is coding online games. I spent several years writing an online game called Age of Fable (www.ageoffable.net). I don't have any plans to do more on it, but it's still online, and you can play it for free. I'm currently working on an online 'card' game, like Yu-Gi-Oh or Pokemon. I've also done a few smaller projects. For example I did an online version of the computer game Oregon Trail.



Which story or poem was your favorite?

Probably 'The God of the Poor'.



Is there any type of music you like to listen to while you write ?

No, I find music distracting when I'm trying to write.



What was your inspiration for all your stories and poems?

Some ideas just pop into my head, without me knowing where the idea comes from. Other ideas come from experiences in my life. For example a while ago I found three injured birds in the space of a few weeks. I took all of them to the local vet. As I was carrying one of them, I thought that the woman at reception might wonder where I was finding all these injured birds, and that was the inspiration for my story 'Lost, Feral or Stray'.

I've written a lot about cats, based on having been a cat owner. But I'm a lot more cynical about them than some cat-lovers. One reviewer said he couldn't work out whether I loved cats or hated them.

Of course other fiction is a big inspiration. In some cases it's obvious. I've done poems directly based on stories by HP Lovecraft and other writers for example. In other cases it's more subtle: for example the city of Teleleli or Telelee is partly based on Fritz Leiber's Lankhmar, partly on Terry Pratchett's Ankh-Morpork, and partly on Port Blacksand in the Fighting Fantasy series. the dialogue in Lord of the Rings had a big influence on how my characters talk.



Which story or poem can you relate to the most?

'The Perfect Woman'.



Are you planning to write any other book?

The main thing I'm working on right now is a poem set in the old West, called 'Confession of a Bounty Hunter'.

I've been encouraged to write a novel set in the fantasy city of Telelee, which is the setting of a few of the stories in 'The New Death and others'. I have a lot of background for this world, because I blog every day (http://www.apolitical.info/teleleli) and most of it is setting detail. I also have a half-finished novel called 'All-American Detectives', which is a combination of a detective story and a story about superheroes, which I'll probably come back to in the future.



Is there anything else you would like us to know??

At night I fight crime as Poetic Justice. During the day I make my living from acting, using my stage-name 'Brad Pitt'.









Thank You James for the wonderful interview!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yall feel free to ask questions!

Now for the Giveaway!!!!!! a Rafflecopter giveaway

16 comments:

  1. Thx for the giveaway.

    Q - Damon or Edward? ;)

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  2. My choice is Damon
    Edward is to sparkly

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  3. Tell Angelina we said hello! LOL love the interview. I always feel dumb asking an author questions.

    Mary

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  4. Still trying to get the words on Rafflecopter to go from white to black

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  5. Thank you for taking the time to do this interview and giveaway :)

    And I'm horrible at asking questions so here is a totally random question....

    How many pancakes does it take to shingle a dog house roof?

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  6. lol depends on how big the dog house is!!!

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  7. Thanks for interviewing me. In case anyone's interested, The New Death and others is on Smashwords and Amazon. I also have a blog.

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  8. Well done Misty!!!!! Will have to get you to do a giveaway for my book when it comes out next month:)

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  9. Australian accents are so sexy :D you should do a audio clip of him reading part of his book? haha! I know I'm a weirdo :) Love the 3rd nipple, how unique ;) I agree that music is distracting, I'm not a writer but I've had to do papers before and I need total silence, no tv/radio while I'm doing it :P Awesome first interview Misty! ;)

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  10. nice interview.....this giveaway is international?

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  11. they are for e-copies so yes its international Mirela!!!

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  12. Great interview and giveaway! Thanks for this opportunity.

    What is your favorite food?

    GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!!! :-)

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  13. James came up in one of the Google searches I have for my own name. I'm reading one of his samplings from Amazon and it's quite intriguing. Here's to supporting my own name!

    Cheers,
    Jim Hutchings (Pennsylvania, USA)

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  14. Ok what to ask...dang I dont know what to ask!! LOL Best type of book, like Fey, Vampires???....anyone can answer that! LOL:))

    bella

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  15. agreed with the above statement. Australian accents are very sexy! ;)

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