From Skyrim to Asgard
1) What is your Author name; use your Pen name if you have one.
Bruce Nesmith
2) What is your genre and what drew you to it?
My books are contemporary fantasy, based on Norse mythology where Loki is a failing stage magician in the suburbs. I’ve spent my career working with fantasy and science fiction as a game developer. I read both voraciously, and have always dreamed of writing my own stories. Norse mythology has always fascinated me. They treat their gods more like the heroes of American tall tales, like Paul Bunyan and Pecos Bill. Real people with outsized abilities, but also with very human foibles. It makes for a great setting.
3) What is the best time of day for you to write?
Late morning and early afternoon are best for me. I’m not one of those guys that gets up early and immediately hits the keyboard. I prefer to read the paper, spend a little time with my favorite video games, then get to work.
4) What is your favorite way to connect with readers? (Social media, newsletters or something else)
I’m on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100065304827763 . If you write to me, I will ALWAYS write you back.
5) Do you attend writing conferences? If so, which ones?
I attended 20BooksTo50k and gave a couple of talks there. I don’t have anything scheduled at the moment. With the pandemic finally easing, I’ll get back into that.
6) What is the most important bit of information you would want to tell a person interested in publishing a book?
Write what you love. You may or may not make serious money as a writing, but since you’re going to write anyway, you might as well write what you enjoy rather than pander to an audience.
7) Who would you cast as your most recent Main Character if your book became a movie or T.V. show?
I think Tim Roth would make an amazing Loki from my books. His ability to be both funny and dangerous at the same time would work really well.
8) If you could take one item out of any book that you have ever read, what would it be or why?
I’d take any of the space ships from any of Iain Banks Culture novels. Who wouldn’t love a talking ship that can take you all around the galaxy?
9) Do you prefer to read series or independent novels?
I read both, but I lean toward shorter series or stand-alone books. By book three of a series, I’m itching to read something new and different.
10) How do you arrange your bookshelves? (Color, alphabetical or another method)
I’m horribly anal retentive about that. By author, then title. With series, the series name is used as the title for sorting. I have over 2500 science fiction and fantasy books, so if I don’t organize them, I’ll never find them.
11) If you could live in any “book world” what would that be?
I hate to double dip, but once again I’d pick Iain Banks Culture books. It’s a functional utopia (an oxymoron, I know), where humans can go just about anywhere and find amazing things.
12) Do you own any interesting ‘bookish’ memorabilia or clothes? If so, what?
My daughter gave me a Call of Cthulhu t-shirt where the art is formed from the text of the story. If you look close, you can actually read Lovecraft’s story from the shirt. When you step back, you see Cthulhu perched ominously on a pillar.
13) What is the name of your book/series? Tell me a little bit about them.
The Loki Redeemed trilogy is Mischief Maker, Odin’s Escape, and Ymir’s Return. The main character is Loki of the Norse Myths, not the Loki of the movies or comics. He’s hiding out in the suburbs as a stage magician, until an attempt on his life forces him to return to Asgard and the Nine Realms. I’ve adapted the Norse mythology and setting to work in a modern world, where all the Nine Realms are in their own pocket dimension connected by the world tree Yggdrasil. In the course of his adventures, Loki wrestles with his identity as a god. What does that mean? Does having extraordinary powers make you a deity, or just a person with new ways to get in trouble?
14) Where can we find and follow you? (Name your social media platforms.)
15) If there anything important that you would want my readers to know about you?
I’ve spent my career making video games and table top roleplaying games. I was fortunate enough to be the lead designer for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, as well as working on Fallout 3 & 4 and most of the other Elder Scrolls titles. Prior to all of that, I worked at TSR writing Dungeons & Dragons supplements and adventures. I’m best know as the author of the popular Ravenloft boxed set.
