The Fast Friday Interviews: Robyn Bennis

Robyn Bennis

Tell me about yourself, Robyn.

I grew up in Florida, where I was co-raised by my grandparents and a biker gang. No, really. Buy me a drink, prove you’re not wearing a wire, and I can tell you some great stories. I moved to Boston for my first biotech job, where I stayed with gay furries for a year. I then moved to San Diego and worked down the street from Mitt Romney. From there, I went to the San Francisco Bay Area, where I learned more than I ever wanted to know about venture capital—which, for the record, is an infinitely weirder and more absurd world than that of biker gangs or furries.

Tell me about your current Book:

When a vast army conducts a surprise attack, a nation’s first female airship captain must bring her unwieldy ship under control and gain the respect of her yet more unwieldy crew, or else they’re all totally boned.

Think Stargate SG-1 on an airship. Or Red Dwarf on an airship. Oh, or Firefly on an airship! Or Stargate meets Red Dwarf meets Firefly meets Battlestar Galactica on an airship! Ahem. Sorry, someone gave me an Amazon gift card recently and I’ve been using it to rewatch my favorite shows.

In all sincerity, if you like witty dialogue, hard fantasy, military fiction, and fart jokes, you’re going to love The Guns Above. Also, if you don’t read it, I’ll send roving bands of bikers, furries, and/or venture capitalists out to find you.

What are you working on now?

Right now, I’m working on the sequel to The Guns Above, to be released next spring. Once that’s on its way to print, I’ll be writing a supernatural fantasy about a woman who speaks to the devil. It’s semi-autobiographical.

Where is your favorite place to be when you write?

Anyplace that has good coffee and tables that don’t wobble. I therefore write mostly in coffee shops, but I won’t kick a donut shop out of bed.

What is your favorite lesson you have learned about the business of writing?

My favorite lesson? That there’s no right way to conduct the business side of it. There are wrong ways, certainly, but there’s no single right way. I’ve seen writers successfully build a following via social media, events, reviews, blogging, and even word of mouth. It’s not about finding the right way, it’s about finding your right way.

What is your favorite Website?

Based on the frequency with which I access it, that would have to be www.sadtrombone.com. It’s the perfect link for any occasion that involves epic fail. And let’s face it, epic fail is on the rise these days.

Links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Guns-Above-Signal-Airship/dp/0765388766/
Blog: http://www.robynbennis.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robynbenniswriteringpun/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/according2robyn
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26123536-the-guns-above