Beginning today, we’ll be interviewing some of the authors who contributed stories for I Didn’t Break the Lamp. You can learn more about the authors and their stories as we prepare to publish this anthology! Today’s interview is with Jennifer R. Povey, whose story in I Didn’t Break the Lamp marks her third anthology appearance with us!
DV: Tell us a bit about yourself!
Jennifer R. Povey: I’m in my forties and I live just outside DC, although I grew up in the UK. (If you ask why? Course of true love is why). I ride horses and am a full-time freelance writer. Which often means writing boring stuff, but it beats working for a living. I’m a bit of a space geek and a history geek (my degree is in archaeology, which is surprisingly useful for a SF writer).
DV: What inspired you to write “The Voice” for I Didn’t Break the Lamp?
JRP: I wanted to subvert a trope. If I say which one, it will spoiler the story. But suffice to say I wanted to take a story in a direction that is seldom used.
DV: The imaginary acquaintance in “The Voice” is an unusual choice. Without giving too much of your story’s plot away, how did you decide on the characterization for the imaginary character?
JRP: It boils down to the same thing I said above. Also, the character concerned does fill an emotional gap for the MC, who has some, well, family issues going on.
DV: Your story paints a somewhat bleak image of humanity’s future, but also includes inklings of hope as well. If you were to take this story further, to the next phase that the story hints at, would it wind up with a happy or unhappy ending?
JRP: Happy. Absolutely. I know what they find in the end, even though it isn’t in the story. And it’s not a bad thing at all.
DV: What’s on the horizon for you?
JRP: Right now, I’m working on a book tentatively called Arana, which is basically a space exploration book in the grand tradition of Star Trek, if way more Enterprise than TNG. I also have a historical fantasy in the works, Arthurian based, The Lay of Lady Percival, which I’m hoping to get out there sooner.
Thanks, Jennifer!
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