Check out this author spotlight for John Dyer!

You can find all his links furthest down the page, and don’t forget to check out his books!

1. Hi! Welcome to my humble blog of all things bookish! I would like for us to start by getting to know you. Give us a short bio, please!

Hi yourself, and thank you for this conversation. My name is John Greene Dyer. I use the middle initial to distinguish myself from a Welsh poet who died in the 1700s, but still has the star power to clobber me on the search engines.

Mom was widowed when I was a baby. She remarried a man who became a terrific dad, and also moved us to the Philippines. Both parents were smart and sophisticated, but I credit Alan Razovsky with making sure I didn’t grow up to be a bum.

In 1986, I founded a computer software company. I retired a bit on the early side. I wrote a novel. Then I wrote another. It’s become a habit.

2. To get to know you just a little bit better, I’d like to ask you some this or that questions. Answer 5 of these and explain why you chose this or that, or maybe an entirely different alternative!

Winter, spring, summer or autumn? Autumn. The climate in Indiana is consistent that time of year, making my wardrobe choices less problematic.

Tea or coffee? Coffee. Lately, I’ve been brewing Philippine Barako, a product of the Liberica tree (most coffee is Arabica). Barako has a unique flavor, often described as earthy. eBay. Qponmama. Tell her Johnny sent you.

Morning or evening? I’ve become an early riser, often in time to watch the sun come up. It’s a splendid opportunity for meditation, and reportedly a constructive health practice.

 Library or museums? Museums. If we could peek in on the lives of ancient peoples, we’d be shocked at how familiar the experience would be. Look up ‘Graffiti of Pompeii’ if you don’t believe me.

3. When you look for books to read, what trope or type of story will always catch your attention?

Short-essay-format humor. Miami Herald columnist Dave Barry comes to mind. The late PJ O’Rourke was another favorite.

4. What do you write? Tell us about your current projects and the latest happenings!

I’ve been writing the history of an alien race whose home world is three million light years from Earth, a nine-book series, presented in three trilogies.

The Anye Legacy – the Anye emerge from twelve-hundred-years of technological stagnation.

The Anye Migration – they venture out into the universe.

AjJivadi – Earth’s secret history, in which the Anye play an important part, comes to light. The Legacy books are published on Amazon.

The industry doesn’t have a category for Literary Science Fiction, so you’ll find these books under Hard Science Fiction. I’m a computer scientist and practical engineer, so the speculative technology angle is as grounded in science fact as I can make it. These elements get their fair share of page time. It’s SF. That’s part of the fun.

That said, I’m writing stories about life, the choices we make, the importance of virtue, the inevitability of cruelty, the value of community, the mystery of God, and so forth, wrapped in eventful, intricate plots presented by colorful ensemble casts. In a review of Illusion of Gravity, author Ashley Manning said, “I would recommend it to people who like sci-fi that isn’t dumbed down. This is a book that rewards you for paying attention.”

I might have said, “Not for lazy readers.” Mr. Manning is more diplomatic.

5. What is your most recent release? Give us a short presentation, cover, and a link for where to buy it!

Resilient

Set amidst the clash between a space-faring commonwealth and its domestic enemies, Resilient is a tale of adventure, survival and perseverance.

Stolen at birth, Suban Dhava is spirited away to a continent isolated by quarantine, embargo and war. Even his name is taken from him — a word from Sanskrit, signifying his clan’s connection to the oceans. It means properly anchored, sturdy, resilient.

Suban will have to be all of these things, if he’s ever to make his way home.

Joshua Grant wrote: “I love getting lost in Dyer’s immersive world, but more so I love the almost spiritual sense he packs into the characters! This series has wonderful action and depth (and the author’s creative use of linguistics is powerful too)! Check it out if you love sci fi set in a gripping and gritty world!”

The quality I’m going for is ‘deeply textured’. Thanks, Josh, for noticing. You can buy the book at

As for what’s next 
 I started the Migration trilogy, and then got sidetracked by an idea for the AjJivadi books. So, I ended up writing the first two, and since it’s not illegal, that’s what I’m about to publish.  Look for Elbert later this year.

In 1928 South Dakota, a furry, foxlike woman tells Doctor Elbert Harrison an extraordinary secret — Sasquatch are from outer space. Their aim is commerce. They’re not here to make trouble.

An elderly veteran of the American Civil War, Elbert expected soon to meet his Creator — only to find out the furry folk have a cure for aging. Emigration to the planet Jivada promises renewed life, and an unforeseen windfall of family connections.

Regrettably, the Anye colony world has problems. When Elbert lends his voice to political debate, an opposing faction replies with violence. If he keeps sticking his head up, it’s liable to get knocked off.

It won’t matter. Elbert’s not the kind of man to run from a fight.

After that, it’s Ghosts of Ancient Vidura, now in final draft.

6. What real-life inspiration do you draw from, and what are your primary fictional sources of inspiration (books, authors, films, music, etc.)? Name a few!

In the late 1950s, my mom worked half-days at a Veterans Administration office in downtown Manila. Her workplace was near an international school where I attended grades 1 through 6. Classes ended at 12:30, and sometimes our driver would pick me up first. There was a wonderful USEA library on the top floor where I’d cool my heels until she clocked out. A staffer referred us to a church library in our neighborhood, where I discovered the Tom Swift books, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and Alfred Bester’s The Demolished Man — the first modern science fiction I ever read.

Thus were the seeds sown. From my dad’s collection came influences by Frederick Pohl, James Blish, Isacc Asimov. I might have been 10 when Mom misplaced Simone De Beauvoir’s The Mandarins and Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. I think she let me read them on purpose because she thought I was precocious. I wasn’t; I was precious. Totally different concept.

The first book I owned was Ian Fleming’s James Bond novel Moonraker, bought at a sidewalk newsstand in Hong Kong, thinking it was sci-fi because of a rocket on the cover. The writing team of Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle introduced me to hard sci-fi. William Gibson and Bruce Sterling brought in edgier material, and I remained an avid reader until I started my first novel — at which point I learned it was better not to have other peoples’ stories in my head.

Moving to the Philippines with my family in 1956 was the inciting event in my life. I wouldn’t be this exact person if I was raised in the United States. You can read about the experience, more or less, in my novel Silken Thread.

An evocative adventure/love story from the author of The Illusion of Gravity. In 1966 Manila, an American teenager courts a CIA recruit, 12 years his senior. It’s a mismatch, a scandal — a minefield at the intersection of paradise, the Vietnam war, the territories of the Chinese mafia. When she ships out, it’s over.

Or maybe it isn’t.

The book is approximately autobiographical in early chapters. My dad’s Taiwanese business associate did, in fact, offer patronage when I was a teenager. I sometimes played golf with Dad’s pals at the CIA. I didn’t know ‘Pete Torvalds’ as well as the story’s main character did, but he was a family friend, lost his legs in Burma while serving with the Flying Tigers, and always addressed the fairway from the ladies’ tee. I only prowled around after-hours Manila in the company of Ramon and his bodyguard a few times. Mostly I went with Berg Villapando, who was plenty savvy enough to keep us out of trouble.

I did not date a recently-discharged USAF Pentagon accountant twelve years my senior. Even if given the opportunity, I would have been too shy at sixteen. The CIA would never have recruited me, even I came to the table with a brilliant resume. I am too often the fellow who speaks out of turn. I should have become a civil engineer, but I didn’t know that about myself until I was forty.

7. What is your writing routine? If you have one, give us the run-down!

When I’m writing, it’s to the exclusion of everything I can get away with excluding, a binge that runs usually about three weeks before I come up for air.

8. If you could go back and give yourself one piece of advice as you started out on the path to becoming an author, what would it be?

Take the creative writing class first.

9. Last but not least: where can we find you? Drop those links!

Blog — https://johngdyer.wordpress.com

Amazon — https://www.amazon.com/John-G-Dyer/e/B06XKCQ11L/ref=dp_byline_cont_pop_ebooks_1

TikTok – johndyerwrites

Instagram – johndyerwrites

YouTube – John Dyer Writes