Geek Syndicate
role playing game being made and a puppet show. Someone is doing a radio play – not of Empire State but of something that is in the background in one of the scenes of Empire State. The fact that people can just do anything at all and completely let their imagination go. GS: When did you start writing? AC: I have kind of always written. I have got loads of exercise books from school of stories and writing and then I stopped when I went to University and lost interest and then it was really when I rediscovered comics when I was in my early twenties I sort of took it seriously. It’s funny because I moved to the UK in 2006 and at the same time my first novel submission got rejected but that was actually really good because it was kind of like ok I need to work harder and take it more seriously. That was almost the kick I needed to actually do it properly. GS: What is your favourite genre to read and why? AC: I tend to read lot of things – Science Fiction, I am a big Stephen King fan. Things I have read recently like Night Circus and I am reading a book called The Professionals which is crime. I tend to mix prose novels with comics or graphic novels in equal numbers. In terms of my favourite writers, I would count comic writers and prose writers on the same level. GS: Absolutely I agree. Sometimes you have a hard time saying to people that comic writers are just as good as prose writers. Sometimes people can’t seem to get past that. Although these days it seems to be a bit better as graphic novels seem to be coming more in vogue and accepted. AC: And you have a lot of novelists are moving into comics. People like Greg Rucker he is one of my favourite writers. He is a really good crime writer and he has written superhero comics and crime comics and he has written crime novels. I tend to follow people – I’m not a strictly fantasy or strictly space opera just whatever takes my fancy. GS: Am I right in thinking you are more DC over the other comics? Why the DC then? I have to ask this because of the DC versus Marvel AC: I discovered comics through 2000 AD and then from 2000 AD I went to Marvel and Marvel didn’t quite do it. GS: I noticed on the back of the book it says you are a huge fan of 60’s Who How do you compare that to modern Who? AC: I used to love the new Series – Christopher Eccleston. I really rated that series but then I kind of lost interest. Old Who and new Who are just completely separate things. I mean obviously it’s a continuous series but just the style and the approach. I’m just not the right audience for it any more, although I love Matt Smith. In fact Matt Smith is one of my favourite doctors, even if I don’t particularly enjoy the stories I could just watch him all day. GS: He seems to hark back to some of the original first three doctors he’s a bit of a mixture of them. AC: I think he is like a young version of William Hartnell. If William Hartnell’s doctor was 30 that’s what he would be like. GS: I agree. He comes across like that. He is like a cranky old man but he is coming across. AC: Yes I think he really nails it. Thank you Adam Christopher and best of luck with Empire State
Empire State is out now, published by Angry Robot.
Christophe Montoya
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