Author Interview: Dennis E. Taylor

I have been listening to Dennis E. Taylor’s humorous science fiction series via Audible. If you enjoy a little sarcasm sprinkled on your action stories, you should check out Taylor’s Bobiverse. Start with We Are Legion. The series is great to listen to while driving around running errands and such. They brighten up otherwise boring days for me.

How does your professional background help with your writing?
Computer programming, interestingly, has a lot of the same ‘feel’ as writing a novel. You start with a premise, develop a structure, write the sections, find bugs, correct, etc. It scratches the same itches in terms of satisfaction. And of course I.T. allows me to inject some plausibility into my stories in that area.

Can you tell us more about why you wrote your latest books?
I have an ideas list with more than a hundred items (and growing). My agent and I have a discussion when I’m ready to start my next book. I know what I like, he has a good idea what the market is looking for. It works.

What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Have thick skin. Don’t take anything personally. Get critiques, get beta readers, and listen to what they say. But be dispassionate about the feedback. Critics are not a commentary on your value as a person.

What are some upcoming publishing projects you are working on?
I am currently working on editing Outland for a re-issue. I have a sequel to Outland partly written. I have the next bobiverse book mapped out. And my agent has expressed interest in a sort of alien-invasion story that’s on my ideas list.