Featured Interview With Rob Shackleford
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
Hi, My name is Rob Shackleford and I live on the Gold Coast in Australia with Deborah-Jane, my partner. We each have a son and a daughter and, because they are living away from home and have not yet decided to have kids, we are in that sweet spot in time when we can, and do, travel when we can.
I was raised in a working-class family in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia where my father worked overtime to keep me and my brothers and sister healthy and happy. I am the eldest of 6 and, yes, even though my mother was a legendary stay-at-home mum, my parents could still afford to pay off a mortgage, run a car and feed our tribe with one wage.
We now live at Burleigh, which is a chilled part of Australia’s Gold Coast. We are lucky to live near the beach, yet be in a place that is still real, where values and friendliness matter. We do have a cat, Mr Moo, who is the undisputed God of our household.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
My father always encouraged me to read the classics, so I was in my early years of primary school when I read Treasure Island, Gulliver’s Travels and others. I don’t know how much I understood, but I began to read a lot. I then found out about Science Fiction, with Andre Norton, the Clarke, Heinlein, Bradbury, Asimov and others.
My tastes changed with University and then, as life got in the way, I read many authors and changed genre on many occasions.
I actually started writing in my late ’40’s – so that is the admission that I am kind of an old bugger. To be a writer was never an aspiration, but when the time came I took up the mantle and hope I have something to offer.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
There are so many!
I admire the beautiful descriptive writing of ‘The Life of Pi’s Yann Martel, ‘Shantaram’s Gregory David Roberts, or Colleen McCullough’s superb series of novels on Rome.
I love brilliant imagination and the ability to story-tell as shown in the warped imagination of Steven King, Tolkien and even the simplicity of ‘The Martian’s Andy Weir.
I am also astounded by the pure brilliance of the research undertaken by historian Simon Sebag Montfiore and his range of excellent novels, and of course Bernard Cornwell.
Last but not least I adore the Science Fiction greats – Arthur C Clarke, Frank Herbert, Robert Heinlein, Greg Bear and so many others who make our imaginations soar beyond the stars.
And these are but a few. I will post this and then say – “How could I have forgotten …?”
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Traveller Inceptio is a blend of gentle Science Fiction and Historical Fiction where I examine how 21st Century humans could survive the world of 1000 years in the past.
With the accidental discovery of the Transporter through a research project at a regional Australian university, it is discovered the device sends a person precisely back in time 1000 years. As the findings were published, there is a debate as to what could be done with such an opportunity to study world history. An audacious project is developed where specially selected members of some of the world’s Special Forces are trained to integrate into the world of 11th Century Saxon England.
But the researchers, called Travellers, soon discover they must rely on much more than 21st Century technology to survive the often hostile world of 11th Century England.
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