1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get into writing?

GS: The answer to that question is long and involved, but I’ll lean toward brevity. In college, I had an English writing professor who told me I didn’t know how to write, would never know how to write, and to just give up. Believing her, I spent the next fifteen years focused on living life in its many flavors. While working in a small company that developed desktop publishing software, for fun I began writing story snippets to use in software testing. Having gotten a taste, I started writing technical articles and moved from there into writing technical books and manuals. After receiving positive feedback from publishers (and many users), I realized the professor was wrong; not only could I write, but I enjoyed doing it. An avid reader of science fiction, mythology, and classic literature, I began expanding my writing into fiction, incorporating my life experiences, interest in natural sciences, and my surmises of future developments into short stories, then into novels. Here I am today.

2) What inspired you to write your book?

GS: Babouc’s Vision evolved from a series of short stories I had written about the world that was happening around me. Its dark tone reflects my overall pessimism at the time, coupled with a deep sadness (let me be honest, disgust) at world events. The glimmers of hope present in the book reflect the everyday kindnesses shown by a few – far too few – people I knew who continued to reach out and help others in need.

3) What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?

GS: Hope exists, even in the darkest times, especially on the interpersonal level. Just be open to it.

4) What drew you into this particular genre?

GS: Happenstance, really. For me, the worldview under which I grew up means planning for the worst and hoping for the best. Since science fiction embodies both hopes for the future coupled with a dystopian fear of the future, it seemed a natural genre.

5) If you could sit down with any character in your book, what would you ask them and why?

GS: I guess that would be Iggy. My question would be, when things had begun spiraling down, why did you let pride override asking for help from close friends.

I want to understand the ego behind persons who prefer death to the perceived ignominy of asking for help, even from friends.

6) What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?

GS: This area is still in early development. I have a presence on Amazon, Goodreads, Google, Booklife, and several other sites. It is difficult to say which site(s) has been most helpful.

7) What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?

GS: I guess my advice is three-fold.

• Listen to your characters as they develop. There will come a point where they speak to you in their own voice. Try to capture their sound, sense, and attitude.
• Rewrite-Edit-Rewrite-Edit. When you think you have completed a project, set it aside for a few days, then come back and review it again with fresh eyes.
• Grow a thick skin and persevere. Publishers, Agents, and book reviewers are inundated with submissions and cannot possibly respond to or accept all submissions. Expect many rejections and few responses. (Don’t be discouraged with no response; responses are rare. Be satisfied when you get a response. Be joyous when it is a positive response.)
• Always be professional and courteous in your communications.

8) What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?

GS: I have just completed A Question in Time and have begun the process of querying publishers. This novel pays homage to three great Victorian characters of literary fiction: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes and Dr. James Watson—with a sly aside to a nefarious criminal—and the time traveler of H.G. Wells’ The Time Machine. Firmly rooted in Victorian London of the 1890s, this novel examines the reality of time travel by contrasting mentally relived past events against physically experienced future events.

About the Author

Glenn Searfoss is an American author of works in science fiction, mythology, computer science, and natural history. He lives in Colorado, USA with his wife.