Bob Johnston lives in Scotland where he absolutely loves its landscapes. He also loves its history, and wishes people would stop mythologizing when the real stuff is so fantastic (and bloody, of course). His opinion of his land’s weather is unprintable, even though this spring has been nice for a change.
A good way of seeing Bob’s journey as a writer is to look at his entry on the Internet Speculative Fiction Database. A lonely entry sits in the year 2001, followed by a mini-whirlwind of stories from 2020 onwards. It was a weird 19 years; filled with huge life changes, amazing experiences, some not so great times, but also some fantastic times.
Bob has considered entering the world of adulthood, but reckons that’s a decision that can be put on hold until his nineties. There’s never any reason to be hasty.
If you were transported into one of your books as a character, what kind of character would you be and what kind of adventures would you have?
The settings of a lot of my stories are not exactly a pleasant beach picnic. If I found myself in some of those settings, I reckon I would be the character trying to find the exits as quickly as possible.
If you were stranded on a deserted planet with only one book to read, but it turned out to be one of your own, how would you feel?
I have an appalling memory, so it wouldn’t be the first time that a story has been rejected after many months and I have to go and check my records to recall what it was. I have also been offered critiques of stories that have mentioned themes I never even noticed were there when I was writing the piece. So, I would probably approach any of my stories as something relatively new, and hope I had written it well.
If you could time travel to any point in history, which era would you choose, and why?
‘Closing the Figure Eight’ (2021) is very autobiographical, so probably Tommy from that story. The timeline runs from 1995 to a present day, and there is a lot of pain, but he gets the girl in the end. In my own life I too got the girl in the end. So yes, Tommy.
If you had to choose between fighting 100 duck-sized robots or one robot-sized duck, which would you pick and why?
100 duck-sized robots. I have never played proper sports, but I was an excellent rugby place kicker. I know it’s a different code of football, but I would pretend I was the Steeler’s Chris Boswell as I took those beaky horrors out, one by one.
If you were to write a love story between a human and an alien, what challenges would they face?
The same challenges as any couple, I suspect. Despite my abiding love for Star Trek’s Spock character, evolution points to interstellar offspring being profoundly unlikely. So, offspring might be a good story idea, but, again, that can be an issue here. I think love is going to complicated wherever it exists.
If you could have any magical power, but the catch was that you had to perform a ridiculous dance every time you used it, what power would you choose and what would your dance look like?
A magical shield, absolutely anything-proof, to surround me and mine. I’m well out of practice, but I love dancing and don’t care how daft I look. The dance would probably look something like the Time Warp, only raunchier.
Promo –
The best place to see a list of my work is on my website, bobjohnstonfiction.com or on the Internet Speculative Database.
‘The Plaque’ has just appeared in the Sci Phi Journal.
Upcoming in 2025 are:
‘Counter Measures’ in Big Smoke Pulp Volume 1,
‘Semi-detached’ in Detectives, Sleuths & Nosy Neighbors: Dying for an Answer,
‘Familiar’ in Once Upon a Moonless Night: Tales of Betrayal, Revenge, and Redemption,
‘The East Wind Doth Blow’ in 101 Words.org
‘Rifle Drill’ in Shacklebound,
‘Rossoya’ in Cirsova.
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