One Thousand Worlds today has the pleasure of interviewing Jeffrey G. Roberts.
About
Jeffrey Roberts-
I was born 2/24/49, in New York City N. Miami , Florida Northern Arizona
University , in Flagstaff , Arizona Ft.
Lauderdale , Florida , but 3 years
ago I moved to Tucson , Arizona Miami-Dade
Junior College
Tell us
about your latest book.
My latest book The Healer, is a science fiction novel set in the year 2181. Dr.
Reynolds Cully is awarded a Harvard grant to travel to Mars with his family.
His assignment is to research the physiology of an ancient race there, now long
extinct. All their recorded history lies within the titanic edifice known as
The Face on Mars. But while there, authorities discover an eons old Martian
time/space travel device. This is apparently how they explored the universe,
when dinosaurs still ruled our Earth. But a mystery has always intrigued him:
he is granted a National Science Foundation grant to use the ancient device,
and travel to Earth in the year 2013, to try and solve the medical mystery
known as The Great Alaskan Plague of 2012. Eventually he does reveal the cause.
But unbeknownst to him, back in 2181 Mars, a sinister group of religious
zealots known as the Creation Purity Brigade, believe unearthing of Martian
artifacts and cultural icons is sacrilege and blasphemy to Judeo-Christianity.
And they blow up the time/space travel apparatus! Dr. Cully is now stranded in
a violent & primitive world – ours; 168 years and 150 million miles from
his wife & children. How will he survive? How will he heal using 22nd
century technology, without exposing his real identity; and possibly altering
the course of history in doing so? It is a crisis of conscience he must grapple
with. But he has no choice. For he is – THE HEALER.
How
many books have you written?
I have written 7 books. THE HEALER is the first
to be published, by Booklocker.com.
What
are you working on at the moment?
At the moment I am working on # 8, a novel entitled
The Horror on the H.M.S. Cottingly; a
comedy science fiction story, My Pet
Carrot Speaks Norwegian; and an essay, The
Cult of Infinite Complexity.
What
are the most important attributes to remaining sane as a writer?
The most important attributes to remaining sane
as a writer are: faith in a higher power, enough sleep, treating yourself
occasionally to comfort foods, good friends, a hobby or diversion, and a
55-gallon drum of industrial strength Ibuprofen right next to your computer.
How
much impact does your childhood have on your writing?
My childhood impact on my writing had to be more
nature than nurture: my father was a writer for the radio show Duffy’s Tavern, after the end of WW II.
What
was the greatest thing you learned at school?
The greatest thing I learned in school (Northern Arizona University
If you
could meet any of your own characters, who would it be?
If I could meet any of my characters, it would
have to be Dr. Reynolds Cully, of The
Healer.
Do you
have a favourite character among the ones you've invented?
One of my favorite characters would have to be
Ogden D. Fwipplesnifter, from my fantasy/comedy novel The Weird and Wondrous Bottle.
What do
you want to be when you grow up?
What do I want to be when I grow up? Who says I
have any intention of growing up? But when I was growing up I wanted to be a test pilot. My ultimate dream job
would have been to work for NASA on the Mars exploration team. But math
aptitude was never my strong suit. So much for astronautical engineering.
If you
could trade places with any other person for a week, famous or not famous,
living or dead, real or fictional. with whom would it be?
If I could trade places with someone for a week,
it would probably be either Donald Trump- for his money- or Dr. Franklin Chang
Diaz, former NASA astronaut, and physicist who now heads Ad Astra Corp.,
developer of the VASIMIR engine for interplanetary flight, which will be
capable of speeds of 123,000 miles per hour.
What do
you think about when you are alone in your car?
I don’t think about anything in my car because I
no longer own one. Eventually I will again. But when I did own one, I usually
concentrated on where I was going, and my driving.
What
song best describes your work ethic?
The song that best describes my work ethic? I Did It My Way, by Frank Sinatra.
Where you can purchase The Healer:
Connect with Jeffrey G. Roberts:
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