Dan relaxes after a long day writing.
Today, we are talking with the man, the legend, the one responsible for the 40k screenplay, award winning author, and a man whose works span many years and artistic mediums...Dan Abnett!
I am honored by the opportunity to interview Mr. Abnett, as floored as I am by his impressive background of novels and comic book stories, I recently found out (according to online study) that Mr. Abnett has written a couple of screenplays for one of my favorite TV series, Dr Who! How cool is that?! So, without further ado, here is the interview...
DW: What are some of the sources of your creative influence? What inspires you?
Dan: Ideas come from everywhere- things I see, things I read (fiction and non-fiction), movies...actual creative influences would include writers like Lovecraft, Bradbury, Vance, Laumer, Herbert, Borges...In all honesty, I keep my eyes peeled and make notes. Big ideas can come from tiny places. And things like a simple train journey can give you great thinking time.
DW: The background for Warhammer 40,000 has become very vast and is very important to fans and gamers. It has a far reaching and unseen impact, how do you feel knowing you have been a part of this?
Dan: It’s a great feeling, and I’m happy and proud to be part of it. It’s a big kick to see words of everyday 40K vocab that I invented early on now being used in army books and background material. It’s great to feel you’ve added to a universe.
DW: What are some of the challenges when transitioning from writing a novel, or story to writing a screenplay?
Dan: There are a lot of differences, so there are a lot of things to learn. My background in comics helped me, because the visual storytelling is key, but movies are their own thing, so there is a whole lot of learning from scratch to do when the movie came along.
DW: What are you working on currently?
Dan: A new Gaunt novel (Salvation's Reach) A new Horus Heresy, comics like The Annihilators, New Mutants, Heroes for Hire, and Solider Zero a couple of interesting movie projects, and my new novel "Embedded" is on shelves now. It's a combat SF, but my 'own universe' published by Angry Robot.
DW: If you could meet and have dinner with any one person from history, whom would you choose and why?
Dan: Well, either Admiral Nelson, who I am allegedly related to, or Churchill (my wife's grandad was his gardener.) I have also had a hankering to meet Elizabeth I or Shakespeare. I'd just love to know what they were actually like as people, not just legends.
DW: Are you planning on anymore screenplays outside of the 40k universe?
Dan: Yes I am ;-)
Thanks again for your time, and everyone be sure to check out "Embedded"
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