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Kevin J. Anderson

answers the Usual Questions

Kevin J. Anderson photo by Steven L. Sears

Kevin J. Anderson wrote his first novel (three pages long on pink scrap paper) at the age of 8. At 10 he chose a typewriter over a bicycle and he sold his first story while still in high school. When asked for advice about how to be a successful writer, he answers quickly: PERSISTENCE!

He is an avid hiker and camper, doing much of his writing with a hand-held voice recorder while on long walks in Death Valley, the redwoods, or the Rocky Mountains.

Has your interaction with fans, for example, at conventions, affected your work?

Not in actual plotting (although I have offered character names as prizes in charity auctions), but I do so many public appearances and meet so many fans that I do derive great energy from hearing so many people claim they got into reading because of my books. That's enough to be inspiring!

Is there any particular incident (a letter, a meeting, a comment that stands out?

I had one mother who brought up her son to meet me; he suffered from severe dyslexia and the schools had written him off, put him in special education class, and assumed he was stupid. One day he decided he WANTED to read one of my Star Wars books, so he taught himself to read, without any help from teachers, JEDI SEARCH. Then he became a voracious reader, two or three books a week. When his mother introduced him to me, she broke down in tears. How can you forget that?

Do you have a favourite author or book (or writer or film or series) that has influenced you or that you return to?

Frank Herbert has always been a great influence, since I studied his novels carefully when I was learning. I also grew up reading H G Wells very closely, and that impacted me a lot as well.

Who is the person you would most like to be trapped in a lift with? or a spaceship?

I assume you don't mean swimsuit model :-) Preferably a lift engineer or mechanic...or a competent spaceship pilot.

Who is the person you would most DISlike to be trapped in a lift with? Or a spaceship?

A religious fanatic or a political pundit.

What would you pack for space? (Is there a food, beverage, book, teddy bear, etc that you couldn't do without?)

Excellent microbrewed beer (preferably IPA), an MP3 player fully loaded with my favorite rock music, and a slick laptop so I could keep writing all the stories that are sure to come into my head. I hear there's a lot of free time on a space voyage.

What is the most important thing you would like to get/achieve from your work?

Readers. I live with my stories, love my characters, revel in the universes and tales I create in my head -- I would love to know that I am effectively sharing them with others so they can live the same adventures in their imaginations.

submitted by Kevin J. Anderson

30 June 2014

For other answers to The Usual Questions Click here

Just the facts:
Born: 1962, Wisconsin USA
Resides: Colorado, Rocky Mountains, USA
Bibliography/Awards: 125 novels so far, 53 bestsellers...probably too many to list here. Best known for my Saga of Seven Suns, Dan Shamble, Zombie PI, Terra Incognita trilogy, Hellhole (with Brian Herbert), Star Wars, X-Files, and Dune novels (with Brian Herbert).

Web site:
Twitter @TheKJA
Facebook: Official Kevin J. Anderson Page
Blog: http://kjablog.com
url: wordfire.com