Ask the Author: Stephen Llewelyn
Answered Questions (10)
Stephen Llewelyn
Walking through a churchyard at night, I saw a black figure standing upon one of the graves. My friends and I were young teens at the time, and the graveyard was a cut-through to where we were going. Ghosts don’t traditionally haunt churchyards, having no real connection with the place other than bones or ashes, so I believed it was a man. My four friends and I all shone our torches at something we dismissed as ‘some weirdo’, as kids will, but the light seemed to disappear into the man shape. The beams lit all around it, but did not reflect from it. We all thought it bizarre but none of us fancied going any closer to check it out, so we continued on our way. The next morning, I cut through there on my way to school. The grave was quite an elaborate stone structure and easy to spot. I expected there to be a statue on top, maybe with some sort of matt finish or lichen that might explain the strange lack of reflection from our torchlight. However, there was no statue. There was nothing at all. I’ll always remember that figure, but I’m also glad we did not investigate. Perhaps, some things are better not known!
Stephen Llewelyn
Moving house and meeting the deadline for my new book have eaten this summer. However, I did manage to sneak in several articles of a scientific nature (yes, some were about dinosaurs) and also managed to read ‘A Morbid Taste for Bones’ by Ellis Peters – very relaxing, and The Queen’s Conjuror, The Life and Magic of Dr Dee, by Benjamin Woolley.
Stephen Llewelyn
Isla Nublar. Once there, I would make sure the rich customer paid Dennis Nedry for his work and then enjoy the best weekend of my life.
Stephen Llewelyn
A window double, all to yourself, and then the horror of that slight pressure on the seat next to you, touching you. Your bland smile for strangers freezes when there is no one there, yet they are squeezing your leg...
Stephen Llewelyn
Sometimes I have to take a little time off when nearing the end of a book. Usually, about 10-15k words before the finale. I find it best to take stock, take a break, then read the book again from the beginning. It amazes me how little I remember of what I've written. Once I've reread the story, I find the ending unpacks itself from my brain and I just have to get it down. Rereading for me, not only picks up any holes, but it also expands on things written early on and subsequently forgotten. Some of it is cool stuff, too, that would have been missed if I'd just steamrollered on and not looked up from the work. Tying everything up at the end may not be exactly the same as writer's block, but I believe the process would still work - often you've already written the solutions and forgotten – when in doubt, reread.
Stephen Llewelyn
Whenever this world becomes too irritating/idiotic/boring/frightening/depressing - take your pick - you can just build a new one and vanish for a few months. When you return, it’s hopefully with a sense of achievement.
I’m fortunate enough to write full time now, however, I used to work all over the country converting horrible, flooded, spider-filled basements into shiny new rooms. Just when they began to look nice and comfortable, we would move on to the next horrible, flooded, spider-filled basement – you get the picture. My guilty pleasure at that time was to return to my cheap hotel room each evening, shower who knew what nameless muck from my bruised, aching body and break out the laptop. From there, I would dish out an even crappier day to my characters than I had just lived through... very cathartic 😊
I’m fortunate enough to write full time now, however, I used to work all over the country converting horrible, flooded, spider-filled basements into shiny new rooms. Just when they began to look nice and comfortable, we would move on to the next horrible, flooded, spider-filled basement – you get the picture. My guilty pleasure at that time was to return to my cheap hotel room each evening, shower who knew what nameless muck from my bruised, aching body and break out the laptop. From there, I would dish out an even crappier day to my characters than I had just lived through... very cathartic 😊
Stephen Llewelyn
Don't wait! I firmly believe that there will never be an ideal time to begin, so my advice is, don't waste time waiting for it. If you feel you have reached a point in life where you can write a book, then just crack on and see where it takes you. It will require commitment and much of the time when you really should be sleeping, but if writing is for you, you won't mind...
Stephen Llewelyn
I'm currently working on book 6 of the New World Series - CURSED. I'm also working on a historic comedy, set in AD1399, called The Apothecaries. My new website and mailing list generator is currently under development - sometimes I get to interfere with that, too!
Stephen Llewelyn
Quite often, it's nothing more than a view. I see a landscape and a story begins to unwind in my head. Whether it's the mountains and lakes near my home or something altogether more exotic on the net or within a film. Sometimes, I will pause a film and stare at a landscape - then I'm running for a pen and one of the notebooks I leave lying around all over the house!
Stephen Llewelyn
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