Author Q&A: William Bowden

Today we’re interviewing William Bowden, who writes technothrillers and hard science fiction.

His career began in the aerospace industry, covering a wide range of disciplines, both military and civilian — an engineering background that now serves him well in his writing.

In his youth, Bowden had always been an avid reader of science fiction, with a strong desire to write his own, and in recent years he has been able to do just that.

SADYE: How did you come to see yourself as a writer, and what inspired you to seek publication?

WILLIAM: I have always had some stories in the back of my head since a young age.

It wasn’t so much that I wanted to tell them as that I needed to tell them.

SADYE: Tell us something about your writing process that’s unusual or that you haven’t revealed before.

WILLIAM: I started writing by playing the screenwriting competitions in the United States.

I thought screenwriting would be "easier" – it wasn’t.

SADYE: Which of your characters would you most like to trade places with?

WILLIAM: Rhoda Mollo.

SADYE: Which of your characters would you least like to become romantically involved with?

WILLIAM: Monica Satori.

SADYE: What has been the most surprising, rewarding, and challenging parts of your writing career?

WILLIAM: I did get placed in one screenwriting competition and was flown over to Hollywood – that was the best part.

The worst part was then having to stand on stage and give an acceptance speech in front of an audience of professionals – that was the one time in the my life when I really did want the ground to open up beneath me.

SADYE: Which historical figure would you most like to meet?

WILLIAM: Queen Elizabeth I. Maybe meet Shakespeare on the side. Wouldn’t want to stay, though.

SADYE: What has been the most touching or memorable piece of reader feedback you’ve received?

WILLIAM: I read all the feedback I receive and take something from it each time.

SADYE: What message or theme would you like readers to take away from your work?

WILLIAM: The Universe is really weird, and there is more to being to human than any of us know.

SADYE: What advice, as relates to your writing career, would you give your younger self?

WILLIAM: Don’t take how-to-write books too seriously. Read them, take what makes sense, then place politely to one side and never read again.

SADYE: What experience in your past or general aspect of your life has most affected your writing?

WILLIAM: I write because I can’t help myself.

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Learn more about William Bowden on his website, where his books can also be purchased. 

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