Martha Wells is an American writer of speculative fiction. She has published a number of fantasy novels, young adult novels, media tie-ins, short stories, and nonfiction essays on fantasy and science fiction subjects. Her novels have been translated into twelve languages. Today she is best known for her popular Murderbot SF novellas and novels.
Today, here at Nerds of a Feather, she tells us about her Six Books.
2. What upcoming book are you really excited about?
I'm actually excited about a ton of the books coming out so it's hard to pick just one. Also, I'm behind on reading the books that came out last year and I want to get started on those, too. But one of the new ones I've been looking forward to for a while is The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older. I love SF/F mysteries and this looks like it will be an excellent one.
I like to re-read the books in Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London series. They're great comfort reads for me and the mysteries and ongoing story arcs are complex and reward re-reading.
4. A book that you love and wish that you yourself had written.
That's kind of difficult as the books I usually love are ones that I wouldn't have been able to write. But one recent book that I love is The Shuddering City by Sharon Shinn. She's been one of my favorite writers for a long time and her work has inspired my writing a lot. I loved seeing her return to epic fantasy in her new book.
5. What’s one book, which you read as a child or a young adult, that has had a lasting influence on your writing?
It was My Enemy, My Ally by Diane Duane. I loved the story, and the conflict and negotiation between two groups of characters who had been enemies but who now had the same goal. Also the way the two groups were learning about each other's cultures, overcoming their prejudices about each other. I loved the book so much I was basically studying the technique to teach myself how to write.
My latest book is Witch King, coming out May 30. It's an epic fantasy about a group of immortals with a deeply personal stake in their world. They are part of an alliance of peaceful civilizations who have fought off a conquering genocidal attacker, and then have to deal with what happens to that alliance years later, if it can be kept from turning into an empire, the thing they fought so hard against. There's found family, adventure, accidental child acquisition, betrayal, loyalty, all that good stuff.
Thank you, Martha!
POSTED BY: Paul Weimer. Ubiquitous in Shadow, but I’m just this guy, you know? @princejvstin.
