An Interview with Jonathan Vos Post
Interview conducted c. early 2010s
Introduction
Jonathan Vos Post is a scientist and prolific speculative fiction writer whose work spans science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, and poetry. With hundreds of publications across both fiction and nonfiction, his career reflects a rare intersection of scientific rigor, literary experimentation, and long-form narrative ambition.
This interview was conducted during a period of sustained creative output, when Post was actively producing fiction at industrial scale while simultaneously engaging with scientific research, teaching, and interdisciplinary scholarship. The conversation explores idea generation, emergent plot, thematic intent, research depth, and the relationship between storytelling and discovery.
Post’s responses reveal a philosophy rooted in curiosity, intellectual lineage, and disciplined daily practice. His approach emphasizes storytelling as a tool for exploration—of science, history, and human understanding—rather than as a purely commercial or formulaic endeavor.
This interview is preserved as part of the Better Storytelling Archive, documenting the voices and working methods of contemporary genre creators.
JonathanVosPost_Interview
The Interview
Life as a Writer
How did you get into writing?
My parents were book editors in New York City. My father was Cum Laude at Harvard in English Literature, briefly interrupted by World War II, where he became an Officer Flight Instructor teaching Free French pilots. My mother was Magna Cum Laude in English Literature with a minor in Journalism. As a result, I met famous authors throughout childhood and grew up surrounded by books, editors, and writers.
When did you first realize that you have what it takes to be a writer?
By age three, I was dictating text to my father, who lettered my words onto my crayon illustrations of what we would now call graphic novels.
Premise
Where do you get your ideas from?
I spend several hours every day reading current publications in mathematics and science, often on the day they are released. I also organize and run sessions at international science conferences.
How do you develop your ideas into a story?
Sometimes the background concept is the spark. Sometimes it’s a sentence, an image, or a speculative question. Other times, a character speaks—often modeled after mentors or collaborators I’ve known. Occasionally, an entire story arrives fully formed in a lucid dream, and I write as fast as possible upon waking.
Genre
What kind of stories do you enjoy working with?
All of them.
What genres would you like to explore in the future?
I’ve worked extensively in science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, westerns, and poetry. Every so often I review my inventory of unpublished stories and ask whether there is any genre I haven’t attempted yet. If so, it’s time to try it.
Structure
Do you work from an outline?
Almost never. As Isaac Asimov once said, if I can’t surprise myself, how can I surprise my readers?
Plot
How do you build your story?
Plot is an emergent phenomenon. It crawls free from a chronological list of events. Plot is not story.
Character
For you, what makes a great hero?
My heroes—outside my own family—were my teachers, and their teachers before them. Tracing intellectual ancestry backward through time reveals a lineage of inquiry, mentorship, and discovery that shapes everything I write.
If one of your characters were to describe you, what would he or she say?
Underachiever. Someone who talks a good talk but hasn’t yet created artificial life or built a working star drive.
Setting
How much time do you spend researching the setting for your stories?
For every short story, I accumulate stacks of papers and data. For every novel, entire rooms.
What settings would you like to explore in the future?
I expect to be surprised. My work ranges from deep prehistory to far-future speculation, from alternate histories to scientific extrapolation grounded in contemporary research.
Theme
Do you like to know the purpose of your story before you sit down to write it?
Sometimes. Ultimately, the purpose is enlightenment. If I discover something about the world—or myself—while writing, and find myself laughing or weeping, I know the story is working.
Dialogue
Do you have any favorite lines from your stories?
Hemingway said you must remove the sentence you love most. Still, there are moments that linger—lines where language, rhythm, and meaning briefly align.
Writing Process
Do you have a routine?
I deny myself breakfast until I’ve written 2,000 words of fiction. I work at my computer with reference materials open, drink fresh-ground coffee, and let music play in the background if it suits the mood.
How do you deal with writer’s block?
I encountered it once, under extreme circumstances. Since then, lesser obstacles have not stopped the work.
Story Development
How do you go about fixing a story?
As Stephen King put it: when you write, you tell yourself a story; when you edit, you remove everything that is not the story.
How do you know when to stop?
The story usually tells me. Sometimes it lies.
Words of Advice
What words of advice would you give to new writers?
Write every day. Habit replaces willpower and inspiration.
What are the three biggest mistakes writers make?
They have nothing to say.
They don’t rewrite enough.
They don’t live interesting lives.
Final Thoughts
What’s the best thing you’ve ever written?
Whatever I’m writing today.
What are you working on now?
Several long-form projects, including ongoing novels and serialized works.
Closing
This interview captures Jonathan Vos Post at a point where scientific inquiry and storytelling operate as parallel modes of exploration. His reflections reveal a worldview in which narrative serves not only entertainment, but discovery—bridging data, imagination, and human meaning.
Presented here as part of the Better Storytelling Archive, this conversation preserves a record of storytelling as an intellectual practice, grounded in curiosity, discipline, and a lifelong engagement with ideas.