Tag: books

Lobster Books is linking me up with other indie authors to do some cross-pollination. Continuing the series, here is an interview with Greg Prado. I have not read his books myself, but hear good things!

Thanks for doing this interview with Lobster Books!
Science fiction authors necessarily spend a lot of time thinking about what might happen. A few standard tropes tend to make their way into the public mindset as well. Of the following more common tropes, which do you think will chronologically come first, and why? Tropes: first contact with aliens, instant (ansible) communication across unlimited distances, teleportation, deep space travel with humans in stasis, colonizing other planets.

I feel like colonizing other planets has to be the first possibility. Outside the extremely random possibility of an alien finding us, I’d say that’s a given. Moon base would likely be first, followed by Mars or Venus, then who knows?

When huge changes in technology occur, they are always accompanied by massive shifts in social aspects of humanity as well. What kind of social impact do you think will happen alongside the next major technological discovery?

I think general AI (unrestricted learning) is going to be the biggest game-changer in our society. People are just naïve enough to allow themselves to be programmed out of a job. I truly hope it is regulated soon. Otherwise cruel men will do what they always do and cut out entire segments of the workforce. I think either way the change will begin to occur soon. I hope we are wise enough to handle the repercussions.

Many sci-fi books and movies rely on a unified Earth government in the face of an alien threat. Do you think something like is possible? Are humans capable of coming together to face an external threat or will our inability to get along en masse be our undoing?

Not at first. I think if a few cities got glassed, we could probably reach an agreement a bit more quickly. I think once we decided to collaborate, we would put aside our differences while the immediate threat passed, while also trying to figure out how to come out on top post-conflict.

What kind of futuristic technology that’s currently being researched fascinates you the most? (Thinking of mentally controlled prosthetics, quantum entanglement, private space flight / tourism, brain augmentation, etc.)

I use mentally controlled technology a lot in my books. I first used it in my book “Darkly” almost ten years ago. I decided on the name Neuralink back then. It is funny because after Elon Musk’s innovation, now everyone is going to think I copied his name.

In my books the interface is mainly used for extremely quick vehicles and exo-suits. This enables the user to naturally control some very difficult to work machinery. I think that it will be a huge challenge to implement well, but I also see some great potential for applications.

Awesome! Thanks for doing this interview!

You can find more about Greg and his books at the links below:
Website: https://www.GregPrado.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gregpradowrites
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/gregpradowrites

Lobster Books is linking me up with a few authors to do some cross-pollination. Continuing the series, here is an interview with Kell Inkston. In his own words, when you pick up one of Kell’s books— “be prepared for strange and mystical tales of whimsy and ultraviolence. Magical ponies and stupendous manslaughter go hand-in-hand…”

Please tell us a bit about yourself! What made you become an author and how did your life change after you published your first novel.
Heya! Name’s Kell, and I love birds, cooking, and growing things that either attract birds or are cookable.

I “work” for “the government” as an “analyst” but my true passion is writing cool novels in awesome universes. I started out at a pretty young age when I drew comics, which eventually turned into shorts, which eventually turned into novels.

I write because I enjoy it, and that’s probably the only thing in my life that hasn’t changed since I’ve started.

What is your prime reason for writing?
To improve the world, first and foremost. I feel like I’m in a weird niche motivation-wise, because I consider my stuff high concept, though it appears like regular fiction from novel to novel. My various series are interconnected and are leading up to a coherent whole (sort of like The Avengers) and that’s where I’ll get the big payoff.

What is your favorite Sci-Fi book series?
Asimov’s Foundation series. Unbeatable in civilization-level intrigue even to this day.

How about your favorite Sci-Fi character?
An almost impossible question, but if I had to say right now I’ll cheese it and go with Legion from Mass Effect 2. I’m a little surprised myself putting it as my number one videogames as a medium are often hindered in the writing department, but I love robot characters with complex personalities, and Legion pulled up some excellent ideas.

One piece of advice you’d like to give to aspiring authors?
Work stupid-hard and you’ll make it. It doesn’t matter what you write; you’ll get there if you push hard enough.

If you want to advance your career, write. When you’re unable to write, read. When you’re unable to read, go on youtube and watch videos of authors doing it right. You decide the speed.

Jedi, Sith, or Mandalorians?
Mandalorians are cool (not sure about the new Disney+ show, though) and make up a large percentage of the Star Wars universe’s most badass characters.

I’m sort of a square, though, so I’ll ultimately say Jedi if I had to pick which one I’d be.

Awesome! Thanks for doing this interview!

You can find more about Kell and his books at his website:
Kell Inkston’s website

and on his Facebook Reader Group.