Meet S. Naomi Scott

Every Friday, we meet a member of the BFS and peer deep into their soul (or, at least, a form they filled out). Want to be featured? Email us: online@britishfantasysociety.org

Name: 
S. Naomi Scott (she/her)

Which region are you based in? 
South Yorkshire (Sheffield)

If you write, which genre: 
Sci-fi and fantasy 

If you don’t write, what do you do?
I also review SFFH online, and am helping restart the Sheffield Fantasy and Science Fiction (SFSF) social events.

Are you drawn to any specific SFFH sub-genres?
Not specifically; I guess it depends on my mood at any given time. I have very eclectic tastes.

Your influences

Tell us about the book/film/thing that got you into SFFH: What was it? How old were you? What impact did it have on you?

First sci-fi: Star Wars (before it was called A New Hope). I was five, and it rocked my world. My dad took me to see it when it first came out in ‘77/’78, and that pretty much kickstarted my passion for anything sci-fi. It shaped the mind of five-year-old me.

First fantasy: The Hobbit. According to the interwebs this was broadcast on BBC’s Jackanory back in 1979 and had pretty much the same impact as Star Wars. I got so impatient waiting for the end of the story on the Beeb that I ended up borrowing it from the library and reading it myself. And a few years later my English teacher in secondary school cemented my love of fantasy by loaning me her paperback first editions of Lord of the Rings. I was definitely hooked.

How does that early influence show up for you (in life/writing/agenting/publishing/editing/reading) now?

I think it’s fair to say I’m a massive SFF nerd, and a bit of a fantasist to boot. I run and play tabletop role-playing games, write SFF, have an extensive library (both physical and digital) of SFF books, films, and TV shows, and for a while worked for Games Workshop. I still love Star Wars (even the bits that some people* don’t like), though these days it has to share brainspace with a lot of other SFF franchises.

(* I’m talking about the so-called ‘True Fans’ here…)

Even though Star Wars was the starting point, I’d say the biggest influences on my writing come from a handful of Golden Age and New Wave authors – ‘Doc’ Smith, Heinlein, Clarke, Moorcock, the two Harrisons (M. John and Harry), Bester, PK Dick, Leiber, Brunner – there’s a lot of them. More recently I’d say Terry Pratchett, Jeff Noon, China Mieville, Anna Smith Spark (pictured), Adrian Tchaikovsky, C J Cherryh, Nnedi Okorafor, N K Jemisin, and Aliette de Bodard have also had quite an impact on my thoughts on the genre.

Okay, I guess I’m a bit of a sponge when it comes to influences…

Where do you draw your creative inspiration from?

All over the place. A lot of my ideas come about from things that matter to me, so news articles about science, technology, and politics. But there’s also a part of my mind (mainly the part that gets fired up by tabletop role-playing) that is constantly mashing together the films I’ve seen and the books I’ve read, looking for new ways to tell old stories. So yeah, quite a few of my ideas are mix-tapes.

Who do you look to as a genre hero? Why?

  • Adrian Tchaikovsky: If I could write just half as many words a year as he does, I’d be over the moon.
  • Anna Smith Spark: She’s an absolute genius with words, and her prose is some of the best I’ve ever read.
  • Steven Poore: He was the one who got me out of my shell and introduced me to the Con circuit. Every single friendship and connection I’ve made in the community over the last few years can be traced back to him welcoming me to the first SFSF event I attended back in 2017.
  • The BFS committee: They keep the flame alive, and I love them all for that.

Your Work

You’re stuck in an elevator for 60 seconds with that hero, and they want you to describe your work. Give us the pitch.

Right now, space opera that focuses on characters first, and how their lives are shaped and impacted by the tech and politics around them. Women being bad-ass, and making the best of whatever situation they find themselves in.

What are you working on right now?

Right now, I’m working on a novella set in the same universe as my short from Fight Like a Girl 2. It’s Pale Rider meets Witness meets Terminator, but on a different planet.

Thinking about all the stories/work you’ve done, what sticks out most in your mind? Why?

I realised recently that I write a lot of strong female protagonists, though it’s never been a conscious decision to do so. Looking back through my unpublished (and unfinished) works, the ratio of female to male protags is about three to one.

I’ve also noticed that in one way or another religion tends to creep into a lot of what I write, though I’m not a particularly religious person myself. I guess I use my writing to explore and codify my own thoughts on the subject, hopefully without being too judgemental.

Where and when do you create/are you at your most creative?

I have a small space set aside in the dining room at home that is my writing space there. Mainly because it forces me to get away from my big ol’ gaming desktop and the distractions that contains.

When not at home, I have a favourite little coffee shop in the city centre that I often pop into for an hour before or after work on weekdays.

What’s the best advice you’ve received about creativity?

Only write when you can. There are a lot of people out there who will tell you that you need to write every day to call yourself a proper writer, but I just think that’s wrong. Write when the mood takes you—and that writing might be actual words added to a work in progress, or it might just be scribbled thoughts for a story idea, a scene, a setting, or a new project. Just don’t force yourself to be creative.

What’s your writing soundtrack?

Like my reading, my music tastes are eclectic, but usually I have a mix of blues, rock, and metal playing in the background while I’m writing.

Pictured: S. Naomi Scott with her friend Medusa

The Quick-Fire Round

Sci-fi, fantasy or horror?
SF

Quiet or loud?
Quiet-ish

Dark or light?
Dark-ish

Strict lines or genre blend?
Blend, every time

Awards or bestseller?
Neither

Fiction or non-fiction?
Fiction

Poetry or prose?
Prose

Plotter or pantser?
Both

Reading or listening?
Reading

Notebook or computer?
Computer (though I do keep a notebook handy)

Favourite SFFH book of all time?
The Princess Bride by William Goldman

Last book you read?
Last book finished – The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke
Current read – The Children of the Sky by Vernor Vinge

Any SFFH author on auto-buy?
Adrian Tchaikovsky, Anna Smith Spark, Nnedi Okorafor, Michael Moorcock

Favourite podcast?
Don’t really listen to any, so I’d have to say The Campaign Trail because I was in it 😊

The Home Stretch

What’s the best thing about being part of the SFFH community?

The people—with very few exceptions, they have (so far) all been absolutely amazing, friendly, and welcoming.

Time to plug your stuff! Where can we find you and your work? What have you got coming up? Consider this your advertising space.

I have a short story (A Way Out) in the anthology Fight Like a Girl Volume 2 from Wizard’s Tower (ed Joanne Hall and Roz Clarke) that was longlisted for this year’s BSFA Awards, and I’m working on a novella set in the same universe that I’m hoping to place somewhere later this year.

I also occasionally blog and review online at snaomiscott.net, where you can find some of my older short fiction.

I keep trying to do the Patreon thing, but admit to not being very good at posting on there at the moment.

Pictured below: S. Naomi Scott’s constant companions, Blasé and Shimmer.

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