Meet Marve Michael Anson

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: 
Marve Michael Anson (she/her)

Which region are you based in? 
London

If you write, which genre: 
Fantasy

Are you drawn to any specific SFFH sub-genres? 
I’m an epic fantasy girlie 

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?

Growing up in Nigeria, a lot of my early influences were not in stories I watched or read but in stories told to me by my grandmother and other elders around me. I’m Yoruba and storytelling – where you sit at the feet of an elder to hear the old tales they heard from another a long time ago – is a very common pastime. Many of those stories, if not all, were fantastical and mythical in one way or the other. So, by the time I began to read for myself, I naturally gravitated towards what is often marketed as fantasy. However, when I heard those stories, I believed that somewhere in the world or somewhere in a time too far gone, animals did talk, and gods did roam the earth in all their passion and fury. 

How does that early influence show up in your work now?

Reading, for me, was a way to experience the world outside of my culture, and even at a young age, I picked up themes and similarities within the stories I heard about my culture and those that I read about many others. Themes of love and grief, adventure and friendship, power, corruption, sacrifice and survival are the same regardless of culture or origin. These connecting threads are what pulled me in as a storyteller and what I hope to replicate every time I put pen to paper. 

Reading the works of Wole Soyinka and Chimamanda Adichie was a canon moment for me. I watched the adaptions of CS Lewis’ Narnia and Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings before reading them, and the allure of a world so out of this world yet so real left a lasting imprint on my imagination as to what was possible in the world of literature. 

(Pictured: Marve with character artwork from her new fantasy series)

Where do you draw your creative inspiration from?

I like to explore many forms of art for inspiration. As with many people, nature will always inspire me. I love studying the art and the artist. I find art to be just as inspiring as the artist who created it. I often get lost in the music, allowing my Spotify to choose a random string of songs for me until one hits in a way the others did not. Or I find myself watching very old movies. I love to see what minds that did not have as much access to technology or information as we do now did with what they had. There’s often magic there. And finally, of course, there’s nothing like reading or listening to a story and watching in my mind a world blossom from nothing but words. I find inspiration everywhere. 

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

The works of the early genre classics are undeniable which is why they remain swiftly on our tongues and are very often used as the backbone of many stories today. I acknowledge and even thank them.

For more recent incredible works, I love Sabaa Tahir’s Ember in the Ashes, Wole Talabi’s Shigidi, Evan Winter’s Rage of Dragons and NK Jemsin’s the Fifth Season. 

(Pictured: Wole Talabi)

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.

A heart-pounding Yoruba-inspired fantasy novel set in an epic world of courtly intrigue and forbidden power. It’s a tale of love and loyalty, magic and royalty, politics and betrayal inspired by old myths and forgotten histories. 

What are you working on right now?

A very secret project alongside book two of the Firstborn Series. 

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

My indie thriller was about a family who is mourning the death of their son while their only surviving daughter plans revenge on the parent who killed him. 

My debut fantasy is about a girl trying to find her place in a world that’s trying very actively to kill her while she tries to hold on to every true form of love she has. 

I think what sticks out for me is my brain’s realisation that the world is a scary place and it’s attempt to prepare my readers for this fact by showing them what characters like mine would do in very unusual and life-threatening situations. Form my brain to you – good luck and may the odds be ever in your favour. 

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

Right now, it’s 2:24am. That’s when I’m most creative. When the world around me is asleep. 

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

When your body tells you to rest, do it. If you force a crash shut down, getting back up i.e. getting into your creative flow will become the single hardest thing you’ve ever had to do. Take that mental health walk… it helps!  

What’s your writing soundtrack?

Anything that’s slow and beautiful and has no words. So basically, Jazz or Lo-Fi.

The quickfire round

Sci-fi, fantasy or horror? 
Fantasy

Quiet or loud? 
Quiet

Dark or light? 
Dark

Strict lines or genre blend? 
Genre blend

Awards or bestseller? 
Awards

(Pictured: Marve at the most recent Fantasycon in Chester)

Fiction or non-fiction? 
Fiction

Poetry or prose? 
Poetry

Plotter or pantser? 
Planster (Mix)

Reading or listening? 
Listening

Notebook or computer? 
Notebook

Favourite SFFH book of all time? 
Simply cannot choose Ahhhh!!!

Last book you read? 
The Principle of Moments by Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson

Any SFFH author on auto-buy? 
NK Jemisin

Favourite podcast?
Creative Inspired Happy with Evelyn Skye (Special shoutout to Publishing Rodeo)

The home stretch

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

The best part of this community is the sheer sense of belonging and shared imagination. It’s a space where creativity knows no bounds, and people come together to explore the ‘what-ifs’ and ‘could-bes’ of different worlds. It’s a joy to be a part of something so special. 

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

Firstborn of the Sun is coming in October 2025 (Add on Goodreads, available for pre-orders now, and physical arcs are out in the world if you can hunt them down!)

For enquires, please see my website.