Richard Morgan

Richard Morgan is 39 and was, until his writing career took off, a tutor at Strathclyde University in the English Language Teaching division. He has travelled widely and lived in Spain and Istanbul. He is a fluent Spanish speaker.

Maxim Jakubowski's view on MARKET FORCES...
In a near future London dominated by the power of multi global corporations, business executives fight each other not just in the boardroom but also on the roads in deadly reinforced vehicles. White collar wars against a background of shadowy conspiracies make this one of the best ‘what if’ examples of recent science fiction.

Below is a Q & A with this author.

Who’s your favourite author?
Haruki Murakami.

What’s the first book you remember reading?
First adult book – Ian Fleming's From Russia with Love.

What's the greatest influence on your writing?
Probably the noir crime tradition. That, coupled with an intense political rage at the way the world is run.

What is your philosophy for life?
As summed up in the Milcho Manchevski movie Dust – "Live your own life – because you die your own death."

Did you always want to be an author? If not, what did you originally want to be and when and why did you change your mind?
Yep – been scribbling stories since I was about eight or nine. Only took me the best part of the next thirty years to get published!

Who do you most admire and why?
My father – because he's worked hard all his life, often under conditions of crushing adversity, has never once backed away from his obligations and responsibilities, and has still managed to retain an incredible generosity of spirit that I've rarely seen equalled.

What jobs did you have before you started writing?
In my time I've been a rent collector, a furniture mover and a barman, to name but three of the more interesting. Mostly, though, I worked as a globe-trotting English as a Foreign Language teacher, with spells in Istanbul and Madrid.

Tell us about your best or worst holiday experience.
Best so far has to be walking the Inca trail to Machu Picchu – I'd wanted to do it ever since I was a kid and my expectations were huge, but it still more than lived up to them. One to remember when you're old.

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you?
As a young man, sidling up to an older woman I thought fancied me, putting a hand on her leg and discovering I had utterly, utterly misread the signals. Cringe!!!! Happened long ago when I was young and inept, but it still makes me blush to recall it nearly two decades later.

What is a typical writing day?
An impossible dream – I seem either to sit around staring into space and writing nothing, or lock on obsessively and spend dawn 'til dusk scrawling without a break. You'd think at my age I'd have learnt a little moderation (and time management), but sadly, no.

What single thing might people be surprised to learn about you?
That my violent tendencies are limited to non-existent.

If you like Richard Morgan you might also like to read books by Neal Asher, Michael Marshall Smith and Stephen Baxter

The Steel Remains Richard Morgan The Tarantino of British SF, Morgan moves like a magician between dark fantasy and hard SF, from Conan characters with 4 letter words to rough and tough space mercenaries and private eyes, but my own favourite is MARKET FORCES, which presents... Format: Paperback - Released: 09/07/2009 Lovereading Price: £6.74 - Saving £2.25 (25%)

Market Forces Richard Morgan In a near future London dominated by the power of multi global corporations, business executives fight each other not just in the boardroom but also on the roads in deadly reinforced vehicles. White collar wars against a background of shadowy... Format: Paperback - Released: 04/09/2008 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Woken Furies Richard Morgan This is high action, ideas driven, noir science fiction but I believe lovers of action adventures could enjoy it too.Comparison: Michael Marshall Smith, Neal Asher, Nick Sagan.Similar this month: None. Format: Paperback - Released: 05/09/2005 Lovereading Price: £5.99 - Saving £2.00 (25%)

Woken Furies Richard Morgan These novels (in our view) are simply superb. Gritty, technologically advanced, but never fanciful. If you like this then go back and read the series starting with Altered Carbon.Whenever I read one I regularly miss my stop on the... Format: Hardback - Released: 17/03/2005 Lovereading Price: £7.49 - Saving £2.50 (25%)