Jack Heath

關於我：

I'm the author of several action/adventure books, including the award-nominated Six of Hearts novels. I'm also a musician and a street magician.

I can never remember my shoe size, which only bothers me when I try to go bowling.

For more, check out the FAQs below, or jackheath.com.au.

Frequently Asked Questions:

How many books have you written?
Four; The Lab and Remote Control and Money Run are on the shelves at the moment, Third Transmission comes out this August.

How old were you when you first started writing?

Where are your books out?
They're all available right across Australia/New Zealand, and The Lab is out in the USA. If you live anywhere else, you can order autographed copies here.

What are they about?
The Lab is about Agent Six of Hearts, a teenage spy in the not-too-distant future. He's trying to keep his genetic-experiment origins a secret from the agency he works for, the Deck. But when they start investigating the corporation that created him, his life spins out of control.

Remote Control begins with the escape of one of the Deck's most closely guarded prisoners. While Agent Six is on the hunt, his twin brother is kidnapped in a case of mistaken identity, and Six is left with only hours to rescue him before the deadline - but the situation is more complicated than he knows. Remote Control was shortlisted for the Aurealis Award for Best Science Fiction Novel of 2007.

Money Run is about a pair of teenage thieves who are targeted by an assassin - read a spin-off short story for free here.

Third Transmission is about . . . well, I'm not really allowed to say yet.

My work is often compared to Matthew Reilly's books (because of the action content), the Alex Rider and Cherub books (because of the gadgets and intrigue) and Artemis Fowl or Maximum Ride (because of the sci-fi incluence). None of those comparisons feel quite right to me, but I guess if someone else was writing exactly the same kind of stuff as me, I'd be out of work and wouldn't need anyone to be compared to.

Is it hard to get published?
There's a lot of luck involved. Only about 1 in every 10,000 romance novels gets published, and I'm not sure what the stats are for proper books. (Oh, zing! Take that, Diana Gabaldon!) But there are a few things you can do.

Get an agent - one who's paid on commission. Send your manuscript out to as many publishers as you can, and while you're waiting to hear back, start something new. If you hear back from a publisher, they'll want you to change things. Do everything they say. Lots of authors refuse to alter their work - and they won't get published. It's worth it to get a book on the shelves. The first time is the hardest. Books are like communists - once one has sneaked into the country, he can open the door for another, and another, and more and more until you own the place.

Is it true that you once made a computer game?
Yeah. It was called Butterfly 660, and I made it with my best friend Paul Kopetko at age 13. It's short, 2D, bug-ridden, and wonderful. Google it and you'll probably be able to find somewhere you can download it from. It's freeware.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to be a writer?
I know this sounds kind of pyramid schemey, but stop wanting to be a writer, and start being a writer. You don't need any qualifications. You just need the will, inspiration, and a pen and paper. Like anything else in life, you get better with practice. So don't plan to write the perfect novel someday, start writing it now. Get into the habit of writing something every day, even if it's only a sentence.

Get someone to give you feedback. Someone who A) has good taste in literature, B) won't spare your feelings, C) won't steal your ideas, and D) has the time for a detailed look. Usually there'll be a friend, family member or teacher. If someone has everything but the time, offer to pay them.

When they tell you what they love about your writing, enjoy the glow. But when they tell you what they hate, listen very carefully. Don't get mad or hurt. Take their ideas, and then reread your work so you know what they were talking about.

And put your alarm clock out of reach of your bed. Seriously, the first step to getting anything done in life is getting out of bed.

Can I write to you?
Sure! Send me a message through myspace, or go to the contact page on jackheath.com.au.

Please don't ask questions already answered here, or ones that you could answer just by reading my books. (Even for a school project.) I don't have time, and I don't want to have to give up answering fan mail altogether!

Will you read my manuscript/short story?
Sorry, I can't. If your writing contained any ideas that I later used, even if I honestly did think of them first, then I could be accused of copyright infringement. I don't want that. So get your work published, and maybe then I'll see it in a bookshop.

Will you be my friend?
On myspace? Sure, why not? I haven't turned anybody down yet, although I'm sure most of them are spammers and one of them is Tom.

I read this far down on your profile. Don't you think I deserve a little something extra?
Sure, why not? Have a cartoon.

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