Tevun-Krus #15 - DieselPunk

Author Spotlight: Sophia Laney

This month, TK had the upmost pleasure of sitting down with the beautifully encouraging and creative @SophiaLaney101. Check out her fun, fast-talking answers below!

If you had to describe yourself in one word, what words wouldn't you use?

I wouldn’t say…creative. I would say super awesome person who can come up with awesome writing ideas! Creative word is so overrated and I always use it on resumes.

What was your nickname at school?

I had the most cliché nickname of all time; four-eyes. I wore glasses all the time. And I was proud of it.

When you were a young padowan, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to be many things; a model, an actor, a singer, etc. But the one thing I wanted to be, as I discovered the joys of writing, was to be a writer. I can draw really well but it doesn’t bring as much joy in my life as writing does.

What is your favourite quote?

“Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you gonna get.” Forest Gump. I’ve always liked this quote even as a child.  

Other than writing, what hobbies do you have?

I love cooking. I cook a lot of sweets; cookies, cakes, cupcakes and French toast. I spend so much time watching the cooking channel. I love to dance too.

Tell us something we don't know about you.

Well I am a college student getting my degree, and will be graduating very soon (like this year).  

What was the first piece of writing you were ever truly proud to have written?

I was really really proud of my old story Euphoria. So much so I wrote five chapters of that story. It was my first story on wattpad. And it got great reviews.

Who is your all-time favourite Sci-Fi author? How much - if at all - have they influenced your writing style?

Octavia Butler and Cherie Priest. My writing is heavily influenced by their writing along with many others. The others are authors of the classical or the historical fiction.

Do you have a muse?

Movies, music, books, graphic novels, they are my muse.

Walk us through your writing process. How do you begin and how do you decide when a story is done?

Let’s see, I start off with an idea in my head. It can be anything, but it’s mostly a vague idea. After some time, I write it down and actually start thinking about it more in depth. I start plotting this idea, even creating a character or two. That’s when everything starts to form together. The ideas just flow out onto paper or computer. I add on more to the plot, characters, etc. I make everything more complex. That’s when I start writing. Hmm…well the characters usually decide! It’s usually when the story and the plot is wrapping up and ending at that point.

What do you use to write, and whereabouts do you use it?

I use pen and paper sometimes but I also use my computer to type down my ideas and my stories. I always carry a pen and paper everywhere I go, just in case I get ideas.

Of everything you have written, what is your favourite?

Hmm…this is a tough question, at the moment my favorite is City Noir. This book is so different from my other writings.

...and what is your fans' favourite?

My fans love The Lady Mary and The Queen, Anne Boleyn.

We know some of the big authors, Orson Scott Card and Tolkein, for example, incorporate their religious beliefs into their work. Are you religious? If so, do you incorporate those beliefs into your work?

Though I am a bit religious, I do not incorporate it into my novels. I try to stay away from that in my writing, unless I’m being philosophical and am contemplating the concept of good and evil.

Was there one idea that you had that didn't turn out quite the way you envisioned it?

Oh yes, there are plenty. Some being a fantasy I had actually written a long time ago. I thought of a girl who was a concubine of the king but was in love with a thief. It didn’t turn out like how I wanted it to turn out. It was too flowery and I lost all inspiration for it.

Do you use real life experiences to influence your Sci-Fi writing?

Oh yes, I use experiences of myself and others in all my writing. I use real events even theories at times to drive my story and my plot.

If all SF writers weren't from Earth but were from another planet, what would that world be called?

It would have a very Latin like name to it. I always think Latin makes everything sound cool. Something Latin that means “The illustrious Writers of Our Time and All Other Times”.

If you were to gain control of some form of time travel device, where - or when - would you go, and why? 

I have to say, the future – 100 years from now or even 1000 years from now. I want to know what happens to society and to the human kind. I want to know if we’ve made contact with outer space and species other than our own. Or how the technology improved or dissolved the world.

Which fictional Sci-Fi Universe is your favourite, and why?

Oh my goodness, I have to say Mass Effect universe. I know the constant battles and fears of being harvested as a reaper but well, just look at how everything is. The technology, the clothing, the species, and the ships; everything about that universe is so awesome.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be?

I would have to say Telekinesis. I would love to prank people with that power. I would move chairs from under my friends all the time. And also kick them out (mentally) of my house if they get annoying. Just kidding.  

And in light of this month's subgenre, DieselPunk...

You mentioned earlier this month that DieselPunk is your favorite subgenre of scifi. Can you tell us how you even got started in it?

I think it's safe to say that most of us think it a little obscure, if we've even heard of it.  

Yes, I love dieselpunk. I got started on this genre from games like Bioshock (Elizabeth is one of my favorite characters in that series). And movies like Suckerpunch and the old Hollywood 1940s movies on the TCM channel and Netflix. And the music of electro swing.

What are some of your favorite elements of dieselpunk scifi?

I would have to say the zepplins ships, the science, the grittiness of the world, strong protagonists, evil antagonists, and finally, who doesn’t love robots! I just fell in love with the glamor and the corruption of government that is prevalent in dieselpunk. Even war!

If I was a beginning author, and I wanted to get started with this subgenre, what advice would you give me?

I would say, do some research before beginning. Get an idea of the many worlds of dieselpunk. The most important is to research the era that will be dominant in your story. Just get a good sense of the time, and what the people were going through. Research can help with world building in dieselpunk.