Schuyler Hernstrom should need no introduction to the readers of the DMR Blog. When fans discuss the best contemporary writers of fantasy and science fiction, his name frequently comes up. An expanded edition of his collection Thune’s Vision recently came out through Pilum Press, so I thought now would be a good time to ask him a few questions.

Please introduce yourself and tell us about your background as a writer.
My name is Schuyler Hernstrom and I write fantastic fiction. I started around 2014 after a friend suggested we try our hand at short fiction. Things rapidly got out of hand and here we are.

What are the most prominent influences on your writing? How do you incorporate those influences without being derivative?
My favorite authors have always been Jack Vance and Robert E. Howard. Roy Thomas writing for Marvel’s Conan is another influence I don’t credit enough. I like reading some foundational works like Song of Roland and the sagas as well. I think you have to shed your fear of being derivative. For me, I think it would be harder to really write a true pastiche, to write in someone else’s voice than otherwise. We are all the product of countless experiences and influences and the mysteries encoded in our own cells. Make something that pleases you and don’t worry too much about anything else.

Many authors say marketing is one of their biggest challenges. What tactics have you found to be most effective for getting your name out there?
This is a difficult question and my answer might hit some people sideways. I think marketing and social media and everything related is largely fake and useless or worse than useless. About ten years ago I somehow found myself in a group of friends, about ten guys. We had all met online and things just gelled and evolved and now I have this small but meaningful network of very excellent men from whom I have learned a great deal over the years. I think that is where the money is. Don’t spend all your time trying to get your name in lights across some fake network. Build a real network of people that do things. Then things just happen. And focus on your craft. Are you delivering the goods? Are you scratching that itch? Are you making readers feel things and see things and go places? Do they care about the people that live in your head? If they do, they will talk about it. Marketing is something corporations/governments have to do relentlessly so we’re always in line for the next drug and the next war and next whatever. Our charge is to make beautiful things and make connections with each other. It takes time but it's worth it.

How much do your audience’s expectations factor in to what you write? Does this ever cause you to hold back from experimenting?
None whatsoever. I just do what I want. Having said that, if I woke up tomorrow and wanted to do something that was a complete departure from anything I had previously done then I might consider writing under a different name. I am very familiar with listening to a new album from a band I loved and being very disappointed that they went in a direction I didn’t like. I adore the work of Jack Vance but I don’t like every story he ever wrote. There is a paradox in play. Anything good that comes from my writing is thanks to people that like and support it. I owe them everything. But I have to create in a vacuum. I have been, so if I stop I’ll likely come up with something that disappoints!

Have you had any new stories published recently? Are you currently working on any?
The last new material out for me is the new Mortu and Kyrus novella that was included with the second edition of Thune’s Vision. It was a blast to write and I’m very happy to report I’ve gotten good feedback from fans of those characters. I’m currently working on a novel and I have a few seeds germinating.

Name one newer and one older book you have read and enjoyed recently. (“Newer” meaning from the past year or so, and “older” meaning written before 1980.)
The last older book I read and enjoyed was Pournelle’s King David’s Spaceship. There is a hard realism there that I find irresistible as a reader of history. You will be pleased to know that for newer books I’ve enjoyed your Necromancy in Nilztiria and Jason Tarpey’s The Godblade, along with the latest anthology from Pilum, The Wells of Ur, which I can recommend as I’m not in it. Outside the genre I’ve been working my way through Michel Houellebecq’s novels.

Any final thoughts?
I just want to say thank you to anyone who has read, enjoyed, and supported my work.