Sci-Fi with Humor & Heart

1) What is your Author name; use your Pen name if you have one.

Derek Borne

2) What inspired you to become a writer?

I learned to read at a very young age, and my love of stories blossomed into wanting to tell my own. Later in life, from middle school to high school, I was bullied. Writing became my escape, writing characters and heroes that I needed in those moments.

3) How far along are you on your current work-in-progress?

Currently, I have multiple WIPs at different points of completion. Currently, I’m in a writing slump, so I haven’t touched them in a little while.

4) Do you prefer writing dialogue, action or other scenes?

Dialog and action are my favorites, as banter and choreography are both fun and challenging to get exactly right. Inflections, word choices to give the reader more with less, or how each punch or energy blast takes you from the beginning to the end of an altercation – I enjoy playing with these more than other parts of the story.

5) Have you ever taken a course on writing or advertising? If so, which one(s) and how would you rate them?

I only took English through high school, I never took extracurricular schooling for writing, or advertising, for that matter.

6) What gives you the most satisfaction in the writing process?

When you’re in the moment, losing all sense of the world around. In my last book, SauraCorps: Salvation, when I wrote the final chapter, I forgot everything except for the sheer joy that comes from simply being creative.

7) Who did you dedicate your first book to and why?

To all my friends who have supported and encouraged me to keep writing. And to my lovely wife, the best support I could ever ask for. She alone is my greatest superpower.

8) How many books do you try to read each year?

My life is quite busy, so if I can read a couple of books in a year, I’m happy.

9) What is your favorite book turned T.V. show/movie and why?

I’m a huge Michael Crichton fan, so I have to say Jurassic Park. As much as the book has so much more to it, the movies still capture the same awe and thrill of the story.

10) What is your preferred method of reading a book? (Audio, paperback, hardcover, or eBook)

I prefer the feel of paper over e-books. Though I am getting into audiobooks more, now that I finally have one of my books in audio format.

11) If you had to write in any other genre, what would that be and why?

I’ve always wanted to write a dystopian, and thanks to my sci-fi universe I’ve already started, I’m doing just that with one of my WIPs.

12) Villain, hero or “show-stealing” side character? Which would you be?

Most likely, I’d be the spunky side character that’s always eating or cooking for the main characters. Just don’t kill me off, please?

13) What is the name of your book/series? Tell me a little bit about them.

I have two different series, but they fit into the same universe. My first one, The Ultimate Agent series is where superheroes and superspies blend together. My second and most recent, The Dino-Rift series, is where a couple of teens get trapped in prehistoric times by a time rift. Meanwhile, an evil corporation is pulling dinosaurs into the present for nefarious purposes…