Justin Stanchfield's eighth story for Boys' Life, "Looking for Charlie," was in the February 2004 issue. "A Dragon for Lord Marquand" is in the July 2004 issue of Cricket. He also has upcoming stories in Cicada and the Usborne Adventure Anthology. He was recently elected Treasurer of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America, and lives with his wife and two children on a Montana cattle ranch.

Andy Miller: Montana has been referred to as "Big Sky Country," and I'm sure you spend a great deal of time out of doors. How have your surroundings influenced your writing? your interests in astronomy, and science fiction?

Justin Stanchfield: Without a doubt, growing up and living in Montana has influenced my writing. I tend to write about places that are still 'wide open,' with big frontiers and unexplored regions. And you're right, the sky provides endless fascination. As a kid I would camp out and watch the stars, looking for meteorites and satellites as they crossed over. Still do as a matter of fact. Then there are the Northern Lights, which can be spectacular up here. Probably the biggest impact Montana's Big Sky has had on my writing, though, is the weather. I'm a storm junkie. I love to watch thunderstorms gather, or see the way a blizzard rolls across the mountains. And as a writer, weather can be everything from simple background to the main focus of the story. Just think how "Dune" would have been without the sandstorms and desert. Meteorology can be so interesting once you get a feel for what's really happening in the atmosphere.

AM: Has acting made you a better writer?

JS: Yes. Though I would never claim to be a good actor, it has very much influenced my writing, especially how I do dialog. I get the best of both worlds in that I co-write most of the plays I'm in and can see exactly how well - or how poorly - any given line works. Being on stage not only gives you a sense of timing, it gives a writer a better feel for creating dialog that sounds realistic but isn't. Good dialog is an illusion. It doesn't mimic everyday conversation, with all of 'uh's and 'you knows' and sentences that simply fade out without a point. Dialog, whether in a script or a story, should move the plot along but still seem natural. I would definitely encourage anyone interested in writing to try some acting. Besides, it's a lot of fun!

AM: What sort of things do you like to read about? How important is research, when it comes to writing science fiction and fantasy?

JS: Research is vital, but it's also something I enjoy. Sometimes I have to look up a specific fact or scientific principle to make a story work, but more often than not some strange little tid-bit of information actually sparked the story in the first place. I love history, especially ancient history - Egyptology is my favorite - and paleontology. You'd be amazed how much the prehistory of our own planet can be adapted to create an alien world. My story in this June's Boys' Life, "Beyond the Next Ridge," is about an alien predator that was based on velociraptor.

AM: What were your biggest obstacles to becoming a professional writer, and how did you overcome them? What do you think of creative writing classes, and writers' workshops?

JS: My biggest obstacle, strange as it may seem, was not realizing every writer goes through a long period of paying dues before they start to sell. Living where I do I've met very few writers face-to-face, and none before I began sending out stories to editors. Thank goodness for the internet. Now, even though I still don't get to meet a lot of writers in person, I can talk to them everyday in cyberspace.

I took a correspondence course from the Institute of Children's Literature, and I've never regretted it. It was kind of expensive, but my first sale, which was to Boys' Life back in 1997, was a class project. Basically, you get as much out of a writing class as you put into it. Go into a class with the attitude that you want to learn and you will. I'm a huge fan, by the way, of workshops. Critters, the on-line writer's workshop, made an enormous impact on my writing. Another site that's a great place for writers of all ages is Holly Lisle's Forward Motion.

AM: What does it mean, when you get a rejection letter? How does it make you feel? What do you do about it?

JS: I won't kid anybody, I hate rejections. But they come with the territory. First, I always feel let down that my story has been passed over. Then, about two minutes later, I get mad about it. After that, I just convince myself that it will do better the next time out. After all, everybody gets rejections. If Stephen King can still get a rejection note now and then, I guess I can stand it too! A lot of writers quit after their first few rejections, which is really sad. When a story comes back, stuff it in an envelope to the next editor as fast as you can and send it out again. But, by far the best cure for rejectionitis is to always have more stories out there. I usually have twenty or more submissions floating around various 'slush piles' at any given moment. That way, even if one gets rejected, there's still a chance that the other nineteen won't. You never know, it could happen.