Source: Stephen Lawson

I’m here with Stephen Lawson, my fellow Writers of the Future writer-winner from Louisville, Kentucky. He very graciously volunteered to answer the following questions:

Tell me about yourself. Where are you from? What’s your background?

I grew up as a Methodist preacher’s son in several small towns in Ohio. I joined the Navy at 18 and deployed three times on the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt, including on September 19, 2001 in the immediate response to 9/11. I got out of the military completely for four years and got a B.A. in Business Administration from Asbury University in Wilmore, KY.  I’ve had a few civilian jobs since then, but I also joined the Kentucky National Guard the year I graduated. Now I divide my time between Guard obligations, writing, and working on my MBA.

What kinds of stories do you write? Why?

I started with crime fiction when I began writing seriously, and then ventured into horror and hard science fiction. “Moonlight One” will show you my fascination with locked room/ cabin-in-the woods mysteries. I’ve had the most success lately with hard SF and urban fantasy. “Leaders Taste Better” is urban fantasy and will appear in Orson Scott Card’s Intergalactic Medicine Show in issue 56 or 57. If you’d like to sample my flash fiction, I’ve posted some on my blog:

https://stephenlawsonstories.wordpress.com

What is your favorite speculative fiction genre? Why?

I’ll read anything that’s written well, and put down anything that isn’t. Having said that, I view hard science fiction as a public service with a noble history. By imagining the plausible, with a few technological innovations, we push the boundaries of imagination and show our culture where its reach can be extended.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

I’ve been to a lot of places–Turkey, Spain, Bahrain, France, Greece, Kenya, Cuba, England, Slovenia, St. Thomas, and probably some others I’m leaving out. I like Louisville, Kentucky the best though. That is where I live, so it works. It’s a great town.

What’s your favorite book? Why?

That’s really impossible to answer with a single title, since it depends on the situation. If I were stranded on a deserted island, I’d want The SAS Survival Handbook. For a book that I’ve studied a lot and that has influenced me the most, I’d say the Bible, and the NET Bible with its many translators and free online availability (with translation notes) is fascinating to me. If we’re talking spec fiction, I’ll go with Ender’s Game. I read that in a single day because I couldn’t put it down.

To read Stephen’s story, “Moonlight One”, please buy your copy today of Writers of the Future: Volume 33. If you already have a copy and have read it, please take a few moments to click this link and place your review: http://amzn.to/2kNE5eh If you haven’t gotten your copy yet, then still click this link, get your book, read it, and review it!