Tevun-Krus #8 - Dystopian SF

Author Spotlight: King Britain

Tevun Krus had the pleasure of sitting down with Wattpad's very own @KingBritain this month. The King so graciously answered questions about himself, his writing, and-of course- Dystopian landscapes and life skills. Check out the King's answers below!

So, who are you—tell us a little about yourself.

King and undeniable ruler of the Great British Isles (which may revert to plain ol' England and Wales depending on how the Scots vote). I'm also a pretty plain guy - but it's probably fair to say that I'm an old man at heart. Everything I like is mostly decades old, and I'm a complete Luddite when it comes to modern things.

When did you begin writing?

I've always been doing it. Long enough, at least, that I can't remember the one thing that inspired me to pick up a pen and have a ago at creating my own worlds.

Why SciFi?

SciFi is a big open toy box where the edges of the universe is literally the limit - unless you're jumping into different universes, and then they're the limit. I also dabble in Fantasy, so I think it's mostly to do with being able to create entirely different worlds, or in the case of Dystopia, warped versions of our own. 

What's your favourite story you've written?

After Britain. I like the idea of having a huge chunk of history - well, future history - to manipulate any way I see fit. 'After Britain' is, after all, a big piece of indefinite time. Although the current After Britain is set only seven years after the world goes kaput, I have ideas for loads of different things, cropping up along the fictional timeline of a post-apocalyptic world, Fallout style.

What is your fan's favourite story you've written?

By sheer numbers, it's After Britain.

Who are some of your influences? Favourite writers?

Stephen King is, plainly put, the King. If there is anyone I've ever tried to emulate (hopelessly, at least) then it's him. Most of my works do have a degree of horror to them, whether it be zombies, or crazed lunatics wearing misshapen gas masks (although the latter is a bit Doctor Who, now that I think about it). I've also read a lot of George R.R. Martin, and he's influenced me in the way that I try and give every character...(cont.)...a capacity to do both good and evil. I also kill a lot of them.

Where do you find inspiration for your stories?

Mostly, it's from books and video games. When I was much younger, if I finished a video game, nine times out of ten I wrote something very similar, if not a complete rip-off, of the game I'd just played. I think it was because I never wanted the story to end, so if Just carried it on myself when it did.

Now that I'm older, I try and incorporate the flavour and texture of whatever inspired me, and not just everything, as I used to do. For example, Fallout inspired me to write After Britain. I liked the idea of a burnt, twisted world and normal people struggling to survive within it. I tried to take that idea and run with it, and in the process got something I'm fairly happy with.

We know some of the big authors, Orson Scott Card or Tolkein for example, incorporate their religion into their work. Are you religious? If so, do you incorporate it into your stories?

I'm not religious, and neither are most of my characters. Apart from silly made up gods in Fantasy, I usually steer clear from religion. If I do go near it, then it's the absence of religion that I touch on - a character's feelings of insignificance in a huge, empty universe, their struggle to find meaning in the seemingly meaningless things that they do.

Others say your first novel is usually autobiographical in nature. Did you find this was the case? Do you ever base characters or situations off real life situations? How do you balance that?

I put a lot of myself into my characters, which I should probably pay more attention to, considering most of them exhibit signs of depression, or at the very least, a disconnection from everything around them. I best check that over with a doctor sometime...But apart from that, I try and find characters and situations in the people and world around me. Can't all be...cont.)...facets of myself.

Who is your favourite character you’ve written into a story? Why?

Berrick, from It's Dead in Here. He's the loud, egotistical front man of Mercia, the rock'n'roll band in which the story is set around. They set off on a mission to play their final gig in a zombie clogged England, and he's the one who drags them through it, mostly because he wants to go out with the biggest bang that anyone ever could.

I like him because I find him hilarious, but also because there's a reason behind his unrelenting cockiness. He's a guy who's grown up idolising the greats of rock'n'roll - Hendrix, Plant, Moon - and the only way he thinks he can reach their dizzying heights is by being as loud and ridiculous as they were. Despite his sometimes sickening arrogance, he's really just a young guy who's trying to be join the pantheon in which he worships. I don't know why that makes me like him so much, but it does. And, it's also just plain fun to write such a ridiculous character.

Walk us through your writing process—how does it begin? What do you do when you get stuck? How do you decide when the story is over?

I start out with a rough idea of where I want to go with the story. Usually, by the time I've got half of the stuff I'd planned on writing down, another idea splays itself before me, and I have to go for that one instead. I like to go along with the characters on their journey, that way I'm as surprised or as shocked when they do the things that they do as the reader is. Others may find planning their tale to the finest, meticulous detail an easier way to write, but I find it far too constricting, and dare I say it, boring.

If I ever get stuck, I start work on something else, and hope that somehow I'll be able to carry it on later. It usually works, but you never know when the spark'll come back. I've got stuff where I've hit a brick wall from months ago, and still can't get past it. In the end, all you can do is hope...& in the spirit of this month's theme, Dystopian SciFi)

As an author of dystopian scifi, what drew you to this subgenre? Do you have any personal favorites?

1984. It is easily one of the best books I've ever read. I'd go as far to say that it's perfect. I remember that when I finished it, I had to put it down and just sit there for a few good minutes, to somehow make sense of the unrelenting horror of what I'd just read. There's something about the constriction of freedom that is just utterly terrifying, and I think that's what makes most dystopians work - there's nothing scarier than society gone wrong. And in the end, at least for myself, I think we all just want to be scared. That's what makes a piece of dystopian fiction so good.

Which dystopian landscape do you think you'd be most likely to survive? ...which one do you know you'd not make it out of?

Again, I'd go with 1984. I'd be terrified, and screaming internally for someone to come along and save me, but my spinelessness would serve me well. I'd keep quiet and do everything the Party asked me to do, and because of that, I'd survive.

But if I turned up in the Capital Wasteland, I'd definitely perish. Immediately.

Any advice to new or old authors starting on a dystopian story?

What would scare you most if society went wrong? Run with that fear, make a world out of it, and build a story out of that. Read other works, get a feel of what makes a dystopian piece dystopian, maybe twist some cliches on their heads. Most importantly, just have a go. I'm sure it'll be wonderful.