Rhys A Jones, writing as Dylan Jones, published 4 adult novels in the nineties, 2 of which were filmed by the BBC. A growing desire to move away from adult thrillers and write for young people is what currently preoccupies him. The award winning Obsidian Pebble is the first of the sci-fi fantasy artefact quintet.

Rhys has 3 grown up children and when not writing, practices medicine. He lives in Wales with his understanding wife and two dogs.

 

SIX MINUTES WITH RHYS A. JONES:

Today LitPick welcomes author Rhys A. Jones for Six Minutes with an Author! Rhys is the author of Dreables, The Curse of Borage-Doone, The Obsidian Pebble and the recently released The Beast of Seabourne.

How did you get started writing?

I trained to be a surgeon. Until I’d passed all my examinations, creative writing stayed on the back burner, sizzling away.  I think I first wrote a story when I was 21, when my mother bought me an Olivetti (no PCs then), so the urge was there from the start. I began to write thrillers in the late 80s, but once the children came along (there are 3), I realized I didn’t have to pretend to be too grown up anymore and so began writing for them.

Who influenced you?

Influence is an interesting word. What books do I go back to for inspiration? Tolkien definitely, Ray Bradbury, Roal Dahl and host of other science fiction writers. When it comes to writing for children, Neil Gaiman and JK Rowling have showed us all that you do not need to compromise vocabulary and style, and I think that’s very important.

Do you have a favorite book/subject/character/setting?

I do love Ray Bradbury’s Something Wicked This Way Comes for its poetry and lyricism. I know it’s an acquired taste but the relationships between Jim Nightshade and Will Holloway and Will and his dad are just wonderful. And there are the Dust Witch and Mr Dark—the Illustrated Man. These are two of the scariest villains I have ever come across because they feed on fear. And the carnival full of Autumn people sticks with me, too.

What advice do you have for someone who wants to be an author?

Writing is a way of life. Know that by doing it, you will get better.  There are lots of courses and lots of books out there to help. Over the years, I’ve cherry picked bits that help me and created my own ‘self-help manual’ to which I return constantly. It’s a process by which you have to accept that what you begin with, as an idea, will be very different at the end, and probably the better for it. Write a hundred words at a time. Worry about those hundred, not the 100 thousand it takes to write a novel.

Where is your favorite place to write?

I write in a garden office…well okay, a shed. Dahl had a shed, but mine is a bit cosier than his. He wrote with a blanket over his knees, I have a heater and a window with a view of fields and cows. I’m lucky, I guess. The shed is my Tardis. I’ve been to some truly amazing places in that shed.

What else would you like to tell us?

Writing for young people is a huge challenge because they are the most difficult audience to reach. We all know that much of what they read is dictated by gatekeepers: parents, teachers, librarians and that is only right. So I’d like to thank LitPick for giving the readers a chance to see what’s on offer. I am writing Oz Chambers’ story. It’s a five book series and all five are written, though only two are published as yet. There’s all kinds of information on the website and blog for those who are interested.

Thanks for having me.

Rhys, thank you for joining LitPick for six minutes!