What are your favorite books?
Kevin: Some of my all-time favorites are Lonesome Dove, The Godfather, Dune, A Fire upon the Deep, Gorky Park, and The Stand.
Rebecca: My favorite books include Pride and Prejudice, The Godfather, Lonesome Dove, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Black Cauldron, A Wrinkle in Time, Resurrection Inc., A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, Dragonflight, Dragonquest, The White Dragon, The Forgotten Beasts of Eld, Jo’s Boys, Encounter Near Venus, The Mouse That Roared, Half Magic, The Knight’s Castle.
Who are your favorite authors?
Kevin: My favorite authors include Orson Scott Card, Larry McMurtry, Dan Simmons, Daniel Keys Moran, Allen Steele, Joan Vinge, Julian May, Thomas A. Harris, Stephen King. Different writers have influenced me at different times. When I was in high school I absorbed piles of Edgar Rice Burroughs; before that, I loved Andre Norton and a relatively unknown writer named A.M. Lightner. Then I discovered Ray Bradbury, who influenced me far more than I realized—not long ago I reread many of his short stories and stopped myself cold with the realization of where some of my own ideas had come from. I liked Frank Herbert and Arthur C. Clarke. Lately, I’ve followed Orson Scott Card, George R.R. Martin, and a lot of out-of-genre writers, such as Stephen King, Thomas Harris, Larry McMurtry, Tony Hillerman, and Martin Cruz Smith.
Rebecca: My favorite authors include Shakespeare, Jane Austen, C.S. Lewis, Lloyd Alexander, Anne McCaffrey, Larry McMurtry, Dean Koontz, John Grisham, Leonard Wibberly, Roald Dahl, Louisa Mae Alcott, Patricia McKillip, George McDonald, Tony Hillerman, Edward Eager, Mark Twain, Madeleine L’Engle, Kevin J. Anderson, and J.K. Rowling.
How long have you been writing?
Kevin: Since before I could write. I used to draw pictures and tell stories while I pointed to them. As soon as I could write I started writing stories. When I was eight years old I had saved up enough money to either buy a bicycle or a typewriter and I bought the typewriter because I knew I wanted to be a writer. So it has always been there … it’s always been in my blood and I’ve been doing it since the beginning. I collected 80 rejection slips before I sold my first short story.
Rebecca: I was dinking around at writing for years and years since I was very young, but I never actually started finishing stories and sending them out for publication until about 1990.
How do you write? Is there a special place you go, or certain music you listen to, to get into a creative mood?
Kevin: I can write anywhere, anytime, using a pen, typewriter, computer, crayon on brown paper, but my favorite method is with a digital voice recorder. I go out hiking for the day—climbing mountains, walking along a rugged coastline, or exploring Death Valley—and dictate my chapters as I go. I see myself as a storyteller, one of those tribal guys who told of adventures around the blazing campfire. I go for long walks, get away from the distractions of people, get inspired by spectacular scenery … and let my stories pour out.
What is your favorite color?
Kevin: Green.
Rebecca: Purple.
What are your favorite movies?
Kevin: Alien, Aliens, Blade Runner, Wrath of Kahn, Die Hard, The Usual Suspects, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, Pulp Fiction, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Life of Brian, The Terminator, Terminator 2, The Thing, The Dark Knight, Galaxy Quest. Guilty Pleasure: Strange Brew.
Rebecca: The Princess Bride, Die Hard, Clueless, Court Jester, The Usual Suspects, Gone with the Wind, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Star Wars: A New Hope, The African Queen, Galaxy Quest, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Little Mermaid. Guilty Pleasure: Ice Pirates.
