Meet Janet Forbes

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: 
Janet Forbes (she/her)

Which region are you based in? 
Greece and UK

If you write, which genre:
Sci-fi 
Fantasy
Horror
✅(all of the above)

If you don’t write, what do you do?
As well as prose fiction (short stories and novels) I also write for TTRPGs.

Are you drawn to any specific SFFH sub-genres?
All of them! I love a genre blend, and also write a lot of historical stuff.

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?

Since I have to choose one, Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonsong was my gateway book into adult SFFH. My cool aunt and uncle gifted it to me for my 12th birthday and, after devouring it, I instantly asked, “OK, what’s next?” I was transfixed with this other world full of dragons. And the main character who was a musician (like me!) went on an extraordinary adventure by herself, which I could really relate to. 

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

Well, to start with, it made me obsessed with building my own worlds, which is now my day job with World Anvil! Indirectly, it opened my eyes to many other wonderful fantasy books, and the way that fantasy and science fiction can be just a breath away from each other.

Where do you draw your creative inspiration from?

I grew up in an archaeological trench (both my parents are archaeologists) and so history and the archaeological record really inspires me, and shows up a lot in my work. I’m also inspired by (boring answer) meta questions, like “what happens if you ram these two genres together”, or “how can we use X trope in a less sexist way”. I have a deep love of writing craft and technique, which often inspires what I write about.

I also LOVE roleplaying games—I played my first at the age of 10—and those spaces, tropes and challenges also continue to inspire my creativity.

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

Mary Robinette Kowal (pictured), not just because she is an astonishing writer, but because of the things she champions in her work, and her incredible range.

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.

My latest novel (currently querying) is Legends and Lattes meets The Thursday Murder Club. After a lifetime of adventuring, Iris Newnam isn’t sure who she is without the job, not to mention how she’ll fill her days at Silver Pines, the retirement home for discerning adventurers. But when a guest is murdered and Iris is pinned as the prime suspect, she’s on the case to clear her name. After all, Iris isn’t the only one with skeletons in her closet, and one of these aging heroes is a murderer. But, with her newfound life on the line, how much must she risk to find the truth? 

The Last Adventure is an exploration of who we are when stripped of the jobs that define us, and how, even after a lifetime of trauma and isolation, it’s never too late to build a community and make friends.

What are you working on right now?

I just wrapped edits on my story for Bona Book’s Wrath Month (in which lesbian gladiators fight minotaurs and the patriarchy in a second-world Rome), and have a few short stories in the works for the rest of the month. I’ve also got a historical TTRPG about shenanigans as a knight in late Carolingian France in my creative queue.

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

I think the range of genre and media I’ve written in is unusually broad. From writing in other people’s IP (The Dark Crystal Adventure Game, pictured) to space horror TTRPGs (Vast Grimm), to prose fiction about dinosaur adventures, and ancient Greek looms, and Jane Austen on the Moon, I reach for settings and genre-blends that really pack a punch. And I love to tailor voice, worldbuilding, and mood to those, to create a complete experience as well as (hopefully) a cracking romp of a story.

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

I try to create wherever and whenever I can. I’ve written in the back of a taxi, and in the green room of a theatre in full renaissance costume, and on the loo between classes when I was a teacher. My first published story was written on an airplane. So I try not to let time and place stop me from at least having a go at squeezing a few words out.

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

“Your own work is never as good or as bad as you think.” This was one of the many things I learned as a professional classical musician that crosses over beautifully into the writing space. It’s a constant source of comfort! 

What’s your writing soundtrack?

Silence. As a former classical musician, music is too distracting because my brain just wants to analyse it! 

The Quick-Fire Round

Sci-fi, fantasy or horror?
Fantasy

Quiet or loud?
Quiet

Dark or light?
Light

Strict lines or genre blend?
Genre blend

Awards or bestseller?
Neither! Friend recs 

Fiction or non-fiction?
Fiction

Poetry or prose?
Prose

Plotter or pantser?
Plotter

Reading or listening?
Both!

Notebook or computer?
Computer

Favourite SFFH book of all time?
Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea Quartet, and The 7 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

Last book you read?
Alchemy Ever After by Kat Bradbury

Any SFFH author on auto-buy?
T. Kingfisher

Favourite podcast?
The World Anvil Worldbuilding Podcast (of course!) 

The Home Stretch

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

It’s so welcoming, and you can almost always find a fascinating, like-minded person to chat with! <3 

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

World Anvil is an award-winning worldbuilding software, novel writing software and RPG campaign manager… and I made it (with my husband)! It’s great for crafting in private, or sharing and growing the community around your work to gain new readers and RPG players. (Professionals like Tracy Hickman and David Green use it, but it’s also amateur-friendly). As a bonus, you can join our community of over 3,000,000 worldbuilders taking part in challenges, supporting each other, and generally lighting up the forge of inspiration.

Otherwise, you can find my own writing at janetforbes.com. I have stories in Flame Tree Press’s A Breath of Time anthology, in Bona Book’s Wrath Month, and in DreamTheoryMedia. 

My RPG writing can be found in the Dark Crystal Adventure Game, the adventure Omega Protocol for Vast Grimm, and Kobold Press’s Vault of Magic and Night Hunters.