Sharjah-based surveyor embarks on odyssey after the writing bug bites

They say that everyone has one book in them. Sharjah resident Roger Trow found out last year, proving it’s never too late to follow your dreams.

However, the 66-year-old British expat discovered there wasn’t just one book in him - there was eight.

“I wrote my books over about 20 weeks,” says the author, whose debut novel ‘The Kyoto Protocol’ has gone on sale through New Generation Publishing in the UK.

The book is set in the 22nd century and traces the journey of three exceptionally gifted kids who have had their intellect expanded after the discovery of an amazing new protein.

The trio flee the Chinese secret service and the superblock nations of Asia and travel to England, the homeland of their biological father Dr Jim Stewart, an international security expert.

The dramatic chase across continents causes ripples that result in overthrown dictatorships and the beginning of a new age for mankind.

It’s a page turner, promises Roger.

Part of what sparked Roger’s fevered creativity was his disillusionment with today’s sci-fi writers. He says: “I used to enjoy science fiction but as I grew older I got impatient with the really fanciful elements of the genre today.

“It did not seem to have enough reality for me. So my writing, although it is science fiction, has a heavy emphasis on the science part.

“I take inspiration from the classics. Isaac Asimov is one of the authors I read a lot of and Arthur C Clarke.”

The unstoppable Roger has already penned the next seven books in the series, which chronicles the future evolution of the Stewart family through the centuries to the year 7,000.

He says he loved creative writing as a youngster over the next 40 years or so he made his living as a chartered land surveyor and opted for vocational training rather than academic study at university.

Roger says that his age has not been a barrier to his sci-fi writing aspirations and others can follow his lead. “There’s no reason why anybody cannot do this,” he says.

Still, the determination needed to polish prose seems to be in Roger’s genes.

“My mother still used to do the cryptic crossword and wrote poetry and all sort of things at 80 years old. We shouldn’t let age be a barrier,” he adds.

Aspiring writers of all ages might do well to take a leaf out of Roger’s book with a new routine for the daily commute.

“Driving down the Emirates Road my mind would drift on to various topics and points in the stories that need to be developed,” he says.

“By the time I got home I’d have a very good idea about how the story was going to develop. Then I would write. A few thousand words at a time would come out like that.”

He tells aspiring writers who would like to be published: “Don’t give up and don’t be put off with a few refusals.”

Also most importantly, says Roger, drop the ego. “When I finished my books I sent them off for professional editing and I took the comments from the professional reviewer very seriously.

“Her comments were very helpful and it helps you see things from the another perspective.”

‘The Kyoto Protocol’ is now available to buy at www.rogertrow.com

julian.pletts@7days.ae