Samantha Shannon
Samantha Shannon
Samantha Shannonis a British writer of dystopian and paranormal fiction...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth8 November 1991
appeal associated girls loads women
I wanted to write a sci-fi story that would appeal to young women. Loads of girls like sci-fi, but it's more culturally associated with guys.
convert mentally versions
I often look at places and kind of mentally convert them to fantasy versions of themselves.
I was born in 1991, and 'Harry Potter' came out in '97, so, you know, I was really obsessed. I used to read them in one night.
I was always more interested in my books and my writing than going out. It's OK to say I'm a nerd. That's me.
admire books created favourite next
J. K. Rowling is one of my favourite authors, and I really admire how she created this big wizarding world. But I think our books are very, very different, and I don't think there can be a next J. K. Rowling. She is one of a kind.
eight oxford quite time weeks
It is a strange world, Oxford - quite claustrophobic. I was often glad I was only there for eight weeks at a time.
gets
I do take this insane pleasure in world-building. I get the world in my head, but I have to make sure everyone else gets it.
oxford small town
What I like about Oxford is how small it is; it's really more of a big town than a city.
cut libraries people places question rest round students
People question what I thought of Oxford. Students used to talk about the 'Oxford bubble' because the place can make you feel cut off from the rest of the world. I would forget there were places like London that were not centred round libraries and essays.
mind nuances rogue tune
I was a hacker of sorts. Not a mind 'reader,' exactly; more a mind 'radar,' in tune with the workings of the aether. I could sense the nuances of dreamscapes and rogue spirits. Things outside myself. Things the average voyant wouldn't feel.
aware both death emily genre john life poets ways
I was not really aware of the dystopian genre before I read 'The Handmaid's Tale.' Many poets as well, like John Donne and Emily Dickinson, would be the influences; I specialized in Emily Dickinson at university. Both of those poets have really interesting ways of looking at life and death.
dad family four half marriage mom retired stepfather three university works writer
I am the first one to go to university in my family. I am the first writer as well. My dad is a retired policeman, and my mom works for a glass-processing company. She is health-and-safety manager, and my stepfather is a plumber. I have four half siblings, one from my mom's marriage and three from my dad's marriage, so we are kind of scattered.
bone four novel since spent thirteen until wrote
I've been writing since I was about thirteen but didn't start a book until 2007. I spent four years writing a sci-fi novel before I wrote 'The Bone Season' at nineteen.
fresh hours mum outside reached recall spend stories sure
I was so sure I wanted to be a novelist. I would spend hours and hours every day writing. Little stories about nothing in particular. I recall one about someone with an illness. But my dedication wasn't really healthy, and it reached the point where I wasn't sleeping. My mum would tell me, 'You need to go outside to get some fresh air.'