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:
John Berkeley (pronounced like the Square in London, not like the city in California); he/him
Which region are you based in?
Sort of in the middle of the South
If you write, which genre:
Sci-fi and fantasy
Are you drawn to any specific SFFH sub-genres?
Epic Fantasy; Low Fantasy; High Fantasy; Urban Fantasy; Epic SF; Space Opera; Hard SF; Solarpunk
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?
His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman was the lightbulb moment for me for speculative fiction – I was about 9 or 10 when I first read Northern Lights, and it had a big impact on my outlook as well as my desire to write. I keep going back to it and finding new depth and references in it. The fact that it blends genres and elements, and was a rare example of a fantasy world that was much more modern, with all its implications, really appealed to me. And as a closeted, awkward, outspoken kid about to become a teenager, it felt like it was asking important, necessary questions about the whole nature of authority and the relationships between kids and adults, and giving necessary, uncomfortable answers that leave the world a better place for it.
My other big early influences were ‘90s-era Star Trek (especially DS9) the Belgariad and Malloreon series by David and Leigh Eddings, Dune by Frank Herbert, and the computer game Arcanum: of Steamworks and Magic Obscura by Troika Games. They all hit me at about the same time. I think all of them have an influence – the Belgariad & Malloreon proved to me that epic fantasy can be epic and have amazing characters even when it’s gently mocking itself. Star Trek proved to me that SFFH can tell any story it wants and give it a soul; Dune that fantasy can be set in space and that genres can have a lot to say about each other’s tropes and their implications. Arcanum showed me the sheer richness that games can have, and that fantasy worlds can have industrial revolutions too (and that they can be simultaneously better than ours while sucking even more than ours did).
How does that early influence show up for you (in life/writing/agenting/publishing/editing/reading) now?
His Dark Materials has ripples that go right the way through everything I write, I think. It was one of those formative books that helped me realise my morality, let alone influencing my writing – the idea of the Republic of Heaven is inscribed on the inside of my skull. I’m sure there are all sorts of ways this manifests in my writing, but I like to think there’s that thread of challenging authority and answering, as well as asking, difficult questions. One of the main ideas in my fantasy writing is exploring how a secondary fantasy world with magic would go through its own version of the Enlightenment, and what that might be like.
Where do you draw your creative inspiration from?
I’m a magpie at heart, so I’ll draw inspiration from anything, particularly if it’s fragmentary or gives me space to fill in a gap. That’s probably one of the main reasons I’m an archaeologist, even though I don’t work in that area, and archaeology and ancient history have always been a really rich source of inspiration. Music is a big inspiration too, particularly if it’s something new or a soundtrack to a film or game I’ve not seen or played so haven’t (yet) gotten associations for.
Who do you look to as a genre hero? Why?
A few people spring to mind, but the one I had to think about least was Ursula Le Guin (pictured). Her prose is probably closest to the ancient epics in feel while still being accessible, and she has the ability to linger on something just long enough, whether it’s a thought, a view, or just an implication. That let her stories have a certain simplicity while still feeling rich, which is something that I find a lot of more modern fantasy often leans away from.
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.
WIP #1 – A fantasy set in a secondary world going through its rough equivalent of our mid-18th Century, in which an apothecary’s apprentice gets snarled up in a race between two explorers to essentially find that world’s equivalent of the source of the River Amazon… with magic and the lingering risk of spirit possession.
WIP #2 – A sci-fi set in a realistic space-opera-ish future where humanity has colonised a few dozen light-years around Earth without ever actually uniting, in which three women from different walks of life work together to take down a people-trafficking pirate captain… only they first need to persuade everyone he actually exists in the first place.
What are you working on right now?
I’m focusing on finishing #2. WIP #1 is nice to dip back into when I get really stuck, but I cannot recommend enough not doing what I’ve done having two on the go at once!
Thinking about all the stories/work you’ve done, what sticks out most in your mind? Why?
Definitely the characters, who I’m looking forward to sharing with the world. I also have an extremely visual, audial and cinematic mind’s eye, so in-universe music and song plays a role in my WIPs. In particular, there’s a shanty-style folk song in WIP #1 that may or may not be a colossal earworm, and a national anthem-style song in WIP #2 that’s effectively the entire setting in a nutshell – so those too.
Where and when do you create/are you at your most creative?
At my desk once night has fallen for writing, or when I’m walking on my own for coming up with ideas or solutions. Autumn is brilliant for both: while everyone else bemoans the lengthening nights and shadows, I’m at my most creative in them.
What’s the best advice you’ve received about creativity?
That the purpose of the first draft is to exist; ‘finished but needing improvement’ is infinitely better than ‘perfect but only in your head’. Choosing the right moment to write is fine; just sitting down and getting on with it is better.
What’s your writing soundtrack?
It depends on the genre of what I’m writing, but I can’t listen to music with lyrics I understand if I’m writing. I love classical music, but I find albums of the soundtracks of the Elder Scrolls games and their big mods are best to write to when I’m writing fantasy; Hans Zimmer is wonderful when I’m writing SF; Bear McCreary is brilliant for both.
The Quick-Fire Round
Sci-fi, fantasy or horror?
Sci-Fi and Fantasy. Embrace the power of “and”.
Quiet or loud?
Quiet.
Dark or light?
Dark.
Strict lines or genre blend?
[imagine a GIF of Captain Barbossa saying “the Code is more what you’d call ‘guidelines’ than actual rules”]
Awards or bestseller?
Awards.
Fiction or non-fiction?
Fiction.
Poetry or prose?
Prose.
Plotter or pantser?
Plotter. But in moderation.
Reading or listening?
Reading.
Notebook or computer?
Computer, but I’d really miss the notebooks. I do write longhand sometimes.
Favourite SFFH book of all time?
I can’t not pick one SF and one Fantasy. Sorry.
Fantasy: The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. I needed to read that book when I was 13, not when I was 33.
Science Fiction: Luna: New Moon by Ian Macdonald. Rich, epic, and compelling. A delight.
Last book you read?
Labyrinth’s Heart by M A Carrick. It’s a brilliant trilogy (Rook and Rose) and the first book, The Mask of Mirrors, is excellent too. Highly recommend. Wonderful setting and characters.
Any SFFH author on auto-buy?
Increasingly, Ian Macdonald (see above) and also Aliette de Bodard, who writes wonderfully.
Favourite podcast?
This is where I reveal that I live under a rock and that podcasts have entirely and completely passed me by. So instead, let me recommend an obscure BBC radio drama from the 1950s: Journey into Space, specifically The Red Planet. It’s very much of its time, but it holds up remarkably well (despite being set in the Distant Future of the 1970s), and a lot of the sound people went on to work on early Dr Who. So much of later SF owes something to it.
The Home Stretch
What’s the best thing about being part of the SFFH community?
At the risk of sounding trite, the community itself. Speculative fiction is easily the richest space in fiction and always has been, and that’s reflected in the people who read and write it. Infinite Diversity In Infinite Combinations – that’s us. And it’s what we do.
Time to plug your stuff! Where can we find you and your work? What have you got coming up? Consider this your advertising space.
My first short story (unrelated to either WIP) was published last year in the immortally-titled anthology I Want That Twink Obliterated! published by Bona Books. Other short stories may or may not follow and may or may not relate.
You can find me on Bluesky under the handle jrberkeley where I occasionally rant about the State of Things™ as well as rave about writing. I have a DeviantArt page under the handle Leovinas where I posted a variety of stuff related to WIP #2 a while back as well.
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