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Matthew Renard

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July 2020

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Who are your literary influences?

Matthew Renard My literary influences are quite nerdy (no surprises there) - Douglas Adams, definitely. The very first Jason and Sammy story I wrote, which is hidden…moreMy literary influences are quite nerdy (no surprises there) - Douglas Adams, definitely. The very first Jason and Sammy story I wrote, which is hidden away under lock and key was called The Eighth Day and they had to deal with God bringing about the apocalypse and zombies.

I like zombies.

Told in first person, alternating perspectives between Jason and Sammy and between different timelines and alternate realities, I ended up telling a good 20% of the story in footnotes as an aside. As Adams never shied away from a footnote, I think it helped me understand storytelling a bit better in terms of how and when to use them.

George R.R Martin, too, is a writer I admire, specifically for one reason. In a 2012 interview, when the interviewer, George Stroumboulopoulos (how is it that if I included a character with that name people would call it unrealistic?) praised Martin on how well he wrote the female characters, and asked how he kept the women's voices so authentic. Martin responded with "You know, I've always considered women to be people."

That has got to be the key for me. Characters that could pass the Bechdel Test. Whilst I don't have two women meeting in Guardian's Rise (some may consider that a red flag in and of itself!) I may very well have to put two of my female characters together in Flame to see if I can pass it.

Stephen King and HP Lovecraft, too, are writers I definitely admire and respect. King's ability to create suspense and terror surrounding normal objects is remarkable, and Lovecraft created some really beautiful and disturbing prose. Yes, he was definitely racist and we should never forget that, but when his work doesn't align with that and you can separate the writing from the man it's a tremendous ability he had. Such is the inspiration the latter had on me that the house Jason and Sammy encounter, The Phillips House, takes it's name from the P in HP Lovecraft - and if you've read the story, you'll know of one other teensy little homage to Lovecraft, lurking in the pit beyond Tarkenden Forest.

Tarkenden, by the way, originally came from Tarkin's Den. I loved the mental image of Peter Cushing's character from Star Wars owning a cabin in a woods somewhere, in his fluffy bunny slippers, and the forest earned the name through that. (And yes, this would be an example of a footnote, if Goodreads let me add them).

One more male author as a literary influence, and that's Aaron Allston, writer of the Doc Sidhe stories, and some of the greatest Star Wars EU novels, in a large percentage of the X-Wing series. Allston had an amazing knack for combining suspense and humour, and I will re-read the X-Wing series every few years to keep reminding myself of the amazing characters he created, as well as keeping his memory alive. I had the opportunity to write to Mr Allston many years ago, as any fan would, and was touched that he wrote back, and was very encouraging about me wanting to become a writer.

I realise most of the authors I've named so far are male. That isn't to mean I only read male authors, nor is it indicative that most SF/Fantasy writers are male - some incredible authors in the genre are women. V.E Schwab's Shades Of Magic is phenomenal and could be used in writing classes to demonstrate how to bring a city to life on the page.

I'm also madly in love with the The Falconer series by Dr Elizabeth May, and would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who likes some poignant and amazingly well written (far better than I could manage) fantasy featuring a deep protagonist.(less)

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What books are on your summer reading list this year?

Matthew Renard Twitter.

Honestly, I've got some books on my list that would be quite surprising (and number two will shock you!)

Now the clickbait portion of my answer…moreTwitter.

Honestly, I've got some books on my list that would be quite surprising (and number two will shock you!)

Now the clickbait portion of my answer is over...

I've never read To Kill A Mockingbird. I have a copy, which was loaned to me by a previous school at which I was employed, but I never got around to reading it. That's the top one on my list. Margaret Atwood's The Testaments, definitely. I loved The Handmaid's Tale and the thought of a sequel intrigues me - especially since I loved the Flood trilogy. I also want to get around to finishing Mira Grant's Parasitology trilogy. I also want to get back to reading some Lovecraft, because (racism aside) he's a terrific writer, and it's a shame that he never got to know how well loved his creations would become - reading how he can create an entire cosmos in so few words should be required reading for any aspiring writer.(less)

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Matthew Renard’s books

Average rating: 4.5 · 16 ratings · 2 reviews · 4 distinct works

	Guardian's Rise: The Capehill Chronicles: Book One 4.33 avg rating — 12 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Danti War: The Capehill Chronicles: Book Two it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 3 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Danti War it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating — published 2021	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Guardian's Rise (Capehill Chronicles, #1) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Matthew Renard's Blog

To Read, Or Not To Read

One of the biggest truisms on the Internet, if you're a creative type, is "Never read the comments". I can understand that; the Internet is a big and occasionally scary place, and when creative people put their creations for the world to see, there will undoubtedly be some detractors. On the internet, those detractors can say anything from "I didn't feel that a semi-colon was particularly necessar Read more of this blog post »

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