SS: In the Geoffrey Household story ‘Taboo’ one of the characters says “I don’t say a man can turn himself into a wolf—the Blessed Virgin protect us!—but I know why he’d want to.” Can you relate to that statement?

RF: My first werewolf was experienced huddled under a blanket watching Lon Chaney Junior’s black and white Wolf Man at the tender age of six. I thought how much better it would be if he could actually be a wolf instead of some hairy guy in need of orthodontic assistance. So yes, the fluid animal movement, the focus on primal issues (as well as the release from ‘modern’ concerns) have always appealed to me.

SS: Hyenas are fascinating creatures. Can you put into words why you are drawn to them?

RF: My first close up encounter with a hyena was less than a foot away through a chain link fence at the research colony housed on UC Berkely grounds. In person they were much more noble than the caricatures that play them. Watching them snap bovine femurs like crackers was also rather impressive. From a natural history perspective they are rather interesting. For my book the hyena also fit so well; a non-Western lycanthrope (Bouda), and the general ‘bad rap’ they get in Western media as skulking scavengers reinforced both the ‘otherness’ and alienation soldiers returning from combat tours experience.

SS: Your Algernon Silence character indicates a nod and a smile to Blackwood, who was an adept writer of the naturalist and Pantheistic spirit story. What appeals to you about Algernon Blackwood’s works?

RF: Oh—I am busted as a reader of the obscure, aren’t I? In general I have only read a few of the John Silence, (psychic doctor) stories, so I don’t feel qualified to really deconstruct Blackwood’s literary contributions. In general I liked the (somewhat dated) mood of these stories. I also indulged the character I had created by asking where would a modern psychic doctor look for inspiration? John Silence, Algernon Blackwood = Algernon Silence (and also Albert’s initials). I am sure Dr Silence would wax philosophic over his inspiration, but after the book he isn’t in a position to do so just yet.

SS: Algernon Blackwood, obscure?! Surely not? Clemence Housman, Jessie Douglas Kerruish and L. Baillie Reynolds—yes. But Blackwood? I’ve got to get out (or at least read) more. It seems logical to me that you would write, as well as horror fiction, military S.F. Can you see yourself ever writing in the crime thriller and western genres?

RF: Yes. I like and feel comfortable writing with a pulpy-noir-immediacy. And this style lends itself well to both crime thrillers and westerns. Two of my favourite authors are Robert B. Parker and Elmore Leonard, who have both written in the crime and western genres, so yes I could see that. I have a short story in the recent ‘Beast Within 2, Predators and Prey’ from Graveside Tales that is really a western wrapped in a post-apocalyptic new old west that features an ursanthrope. My current work in progress is a military science fiction story. It’s a little too dark to be a mainstream military scifi and comes across a little like ... maybe halfway between the first and second ‘Alien’ movies. But after this, back to book two of the John Rogers story. After that, who knows.

SS: Your first novel ‘Succumbing to Gravity’ concerned a fallen angel. You gained some kudos for that book’s evocation of flight. What attracts you to flying?

RF: Yes, in STG I indulged my love of flight, trying to convey the feeling through the protagonist’s remembrances. I served in the US Army as a helicopter pilot (Hueys, Cobras and then Apaches). There were several reasons for this; it sounded too cool, the recruiter told me I’d never make it, and the old TV show ‘Airwolf’. Flying is a technical challenge, but while actually flying you have a perspective others never have, the flow of the land, the three dimensions of movement, and literally taking your life in your own hands. It’s fun.

SS: What’s the most dangerous situation that you have ever found yourself in?

RF: I have been in a few tight spots. Helicopters are inherently difficult to operate, complicated pieces of equipment, and I have been in situations where something broke and I needed to put it on the ground quickly. I also served in Iraq with the US Army (2003-2004), and there were a few instances where I was a bit discomforted. I don’t think anyone was actually shooting at me, personally, so I never took it personal while I was there. But still, being in a combat zone with bad guys and IEDs about isn’t particularly safe.

SS: What is your fitness regime composed of?

RF: I am a bit of an exercise nut. In the loft of my barn I have an awesome weight set, kettlebells, a Concept2 rowing machine, a heavy punching bag and a spinning bike. In my closet I have a pair of running shoes. I try to use all of that stuff a few times every week. A fairly standard strength training routine, and enough cardio to keep the beer belly at bay.

SS: You have a PhD in biology. Might there be a biological horror or S.F. from you down the track?

RF: Yes, sort of. As my next book is a military scifi, the sentient aliens are biologically appropriate and based on dictostelium discoidia (slime moulds). The book is more scifi than horror, but it has some good moments.

SS: You are also a farmer and a breeder of Welsh Kerry Hill sheep. Can you tell a little about that, how did you get into it, what do you get from it in satisfaction and psychological terms?

RF: When I was young I raised and showed sheep at county fairs. When I was finally established enough to buy property (nine acres) I wanted my kids to have some of the same experiences I had growing up. So I got a few head of sheep, a calf, some chickens. Then I thought how much cooler it would be to raise an unique breed that you can’t readily find. I settled on a Welsh breed, found a flock (due to disease quarantine they can’t be shipped to the US, but semen can), and four years later I have a small flock 75% Kerry Hill sheep. Enough property and animals to make a satisfying rural connection without being too burdensome.

SS: In your opinion, what’s the best firearm ever made, overall?

RF: Well, I’m going to have to say there is no ‘best firearm’ for every situation. It’s like asking what is the best tool for everything. To me a weapon really is a tool, and the various sorts of jobs you perform with one could each have a ‘best’. (The ‘every problem is not a nail, so every solution is not a hammer’ adage applies here.) Another thing to consider is the person using it. I’m a big guy, comfortable with firearms, so a little Walther PPK feels slight. Other considerations are rate of fire required, distances, stopping power, etc.

SS: My thoughts exactly. Guns are tools (though some try to use them as evolutionary implements) and they can be very unforgiving ones in the hands of fools and the ill-informed.

RF: I do however have a short list of favourites. The M1 Garand in 30.06 was an awesome rifle, but I think the US Army M4 is a better assault rifle (though I’d rather the bullets were bigger than 5.56mm), trading smaller rounds for lighter weight. My favourite pistols are the iconic Colt Python .357. four inch barrel, and the Webley Mark VI in .455 calibre, but I’d much prefer a Glock 35 in .40 calibre with an extended magazine were I to really need a pistol. Oh, and shotguns....and ...

SS: Best martial art for street defence? It’s my conclusion, at this point in time, that arming yourself as well as you can with mixed martial arts is a wise decision for any survival situation.

RF: I don’t think there is a best martial art for any one thing. Sorry to all the practitioners out there who disagree. I think there are better martial arts for one situation or another. ‘Hard styles’ for punching, ‘soft styles’ for grappling, and mixed styles for multiple situations. I think that whatever style you pick it should be practical, not too fancy (most fancy moves don’t work because your opponent won’t stand there and let you finish), and put you in moderate contact sparring situations so you can feel what it’s like to really get hit. Game changer the first time someone gets a roundhouse to the temple.

When I was younger I thought differently and joined a sparring club. I was pretty proud of my Hapkido green belt, and regularly had my clock cleaned by a variety of different stylists. A few bruised ribs and nasty bloody noses later I could see the value each different style had. US Army combatives is one of the best practical and streamlined mixed martial arts but they often rely on grappling. Grappling is good, but if you’re on the street facing more than one mad dude, you don’t want to get wrapped up with one while the other guy slaps you around. And this also depends again on body type, and on individual pain threshold, and on aggressiveness, and on ...

SS: Aside from Robert B. Parker and Elmore Leonard, can you cite any other writers who have had an influence upon you and why?

RF: I think that practically every writer I have read has influenced my writing in some way (and as it wouldn’t be practical to list every author I’ve read, I’ll give the short list of favourites and why). Of course Leonard for telling me not to write the stuff that readers skip. Parker for the honesty, humour and genuineness of his characters. James Ellroy, Octavia E. Butler and Cormac McCarthy for not shying away from things that are hard to write. Bernard Cornwell and Alexander Kent (Doug Reeman) for writing manly books that articulated human interactions in a way that I could relate to and for leaving me a map to find my own way to express that. Charlie Huston for showing me that pacing can be fun without being mechanical. Popular writers of bad bestsellers that gave me the confidence to write my own books. And of course Tolkien for writing about hobbits which started me reading at a tender age to begin with.

SS: In the dead of night you wake to high, whooping laughter that you immediately recognise. Moving to your bedroom window you see, against common logic, fifty or more squat, powerful forms, both striped and spotted species, loping around your house and property. A bloom of white catches your eye out there and you see that it is a young woman in a wedding dress, prone on the ground not ten yards from your front door. While there are no hyenas close to her you note several sets of pale yellow and green light-reflective eyes glancing at her. You see that, whilst barely conscious, she is moving. You can hear your sheep out there bleating in fear. You watch the eyes of those pacing shapes, and realise this time they are looking in at you. No chain link fence, but you are observed all the same. Once you establish that you are not dreaming...what do you do?

RF: You mean after I cried like a little girl and called the police?