Me. First and foremost, I write for myself. I have to motivate myself to write, and a key motivator is writing about something that excites me. Romance? As a genre, it’s not my thing. I might throw the occasional romantic interlude into a novel, but that’s purely as an essential, vehicular aspect of wider character developments, not an overarching theme.
So, what’s Wayne’s writing style?
I don’t write for genres. A genre is something I only consider once I’ve written the story. If you begin to think of a genre as a means of beginning the writing process, you’re immediately compartmentalising your efforts — narrowly defining to the point of constriction.
If you’re a genre writer, that’s perfectly fine. But for someone like me, a genre is like a toolbox that contains only a hammer, and in the eyes of the builder, everything would then look like a nail.
I write whatever is necessary to transform an idea into a story.
Character driven. People buy into people before they buy from people. Once the reader believes in a character, they’re far more able to suspend their disbelief when that same character finds themselves in an unbelievable situation.
Cerebral, with a twist. Invariably, there’s a twist to everything that I write. I don’t write light entertainment. Dark themes hang like an autumnal fog, punctuated by acts of violence, occasionally breaking to reveal the light of love and the usual emotional suspects, lingering at the fringes.
I delve deeply into the themes that are shaping the world around us, such as: how science and technology interface with society; minor and major socio-political issues, using them as backdrops to the main events.
The fact is, escapism isn’t synonymous with optimism, which isn’t automatically pessimism, either. The world around us is far richer and infinitely more nuanced than it appears at first glance.
Apparently, I don’t write science fiction. Earth Day ought to be science fiction, but it’s more akin to a fable. Lucidity deals with identity, espionage and dreams. A Darkening of Fortune is a crime thriller and action adventure, but grabs racism and prejudice with both hands.
When you the reader encounter the science fiction elements, they may not even be immediately obvious to you, but that’s often a good thing.
If the science obscures the fiction — confusing the reader with jargon — then the author probably got something wrong, or they’re extremely sure of their target audience.
Incidentally, I have several out-and-out science fiction novels in the planning stages, but they’re possibly not due for several years yet.
I don’t fear writing a female protagonist. In fact, both Earth Day and Lucidity have female protagonists.
Fantasy. Fantasy? Kind of. At this point, I’d rather not explain too much, because in doing so, I’d be completely undermining the very effect I’m attempting to create, once the whole meaning is revealed. Suffice it so say, everything is connected.
Everything is connected? So many questions. Just imagine, a universe running in parallel to our own, one sewn together by sinuous threads of interconnectedness — binding characters, events, places, corporations, and technologies together.
Imagine one novel flowing into another, not as part of a series, but as a continuum. Imagine one major novel as a star, and surrounding it, a nebulous array of novellas.
Yes, it’s ambitious, of course it is. But if I make it work, it’ll be spectacular. It’s a far better thing to aim hight and come up short, than to make mediocrity your goal.
So who?
If you’re here, reading this closing paragraph, there’s every chance you are interested in my writing style, and you’re my ideal reader! Buy a book and read on…
