Category: Inspirations

Inspirations, Science Fiction, Suspense, TechnoThriller, The Rise of Oceania, The Shadow of War, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

Escapist Entertainment — More Important Than You Might Think

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Escapist Entertainment — More Important Than You Might Think

(Originally published 1 December 2022 at Crime Writers of Canada.)

Remember when your parents complained that you weren’t working hard enough? When they told you to get a job, do your school work, or wash the car? Or they piled pressure on you to get better marks, win awards, and get accepted into university? And while the stress mounted, you could only sit in your room, in the dark, wondering why no one understood that you were on the verge of cracking?

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Action, An Island of Light, Book Review, Character Development, Climate Fiction, Fatal Depth, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Ltd., Horror, Inspirations, James Cameron, Michael Crichton, Movie Review, Movies, Science, Science Fiction, Suspense, Technology, TechnoThriller, The 1950's, The 1980's, The 1990's, The Rise of Oceania, The Savage Deeps, The War Beneath, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

TSJ Talks Inspirations for The War Beneath

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TSJ Talks Inspirations for The War Beneath

When I was a teenager, I read a lot of 1950s Science Fiction. It was the tail end of the “Golden Age of Science Fiction.” Asimov, Pohl, Heinlein, del Rey and more. I fell in love with the genre because of those books. They sparked my imagination and took me to fascinating locations in futuristic settings. The stakes were always huge. It’s those books that really taught me how important YA Science Fiction is. Readers get hooked on the genre early; it’s what happened to me.

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Agatha Christie, An Island of Light, Book Signing, Fatal Depth, Inspirations, Isaac Asimov, Michael Crichton, Science Fiction, TechnoThriller, THE FURNACE, The Rise of Oceania, The Thing, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, TSJ Appearances, Writing

My First Book Signing in Ages

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My First Book Signing in Ages

On Sunday, I made the long voyage to Indigo/Chapters London North in London, Ontario for a book signing to promote my newest books, Fatal Depth and An Island of Light.  I say this tongue in cheek, because the store is in the same city in which I live:  London, Ontario.  Usually I’m driving hours to a signing … this time, it was only twenty minutes.  It was heaven.

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Action, Article, Horror, Inspirations, John Carpenter, Movie Review, Movies, Mystery, Science, Science Fiction, Suspense, TechnoThriller, The Thing, Thriller

John Carpenter’s Contribution to Speculative and Science Fiction Redux

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John Carpenter’s Contribution to Speculative and Science Fiction Redux*

John Carpenter is my favorite director.

I think that’s pretty obvious if you’re familiar with my blog, Life After Gateway. My post “The Greatest Trifectas in Film History” made it clear that I believe him to be a visionary director whose massive appeal in the SF genre is on par with Cameron, Spielberg, and Abrams.

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Inspirations, JJ Abrams, Movies, Star Trek, Thriller

New Star Trek Film Coming from Paramount in 2023

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New Star Trek Film (Finally) Coming from Paramount in 2023

Yesterday, Paramount Pictures announced a shuffling of their tentpole films on their upcoming slate.  Some of the movies include Top Gun 2, Mission Impossible 7, and Dungeons & Dragons.  Embedded in the announcement was a mention of an “Untitled Star Trek” film, to be released on June 9, 2023 and produced by JJ Abrams.

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Book Cover, Inspirations, Movies, Science Fiction, Steven Spielberg, Suspense, Technology, TechnoThriller, The 1970's, The 1980's, The 1990's, Thriller

The Most Iconic Book Covers in the Thriller/Suspense/SF Genres

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The Most Iconic Book Covers in the Thriller/Suspense/SF Genres

I’ve recently been re-reading some classic novels from my younger days, and I realized that some of their covers might now be considered iconic — some so notable that the movie marketing machines actually copied the book cover, further cementing the image in our minds. Here are some of those books.

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Article, Horror, Inspirations, Mystery, Science Fiction, TechnoThriller, THE FREEZER, THE FURNACE, The Rise of Oceania, The Savage Deeps, The War Beneath, Thriller, Timothy S. Johnston, Underwater Thriller, Writing

CTV News Article on Timothy S. Johnston

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CTV News Article on Timothy S. Johnston

Last week, CTV News ran an article about me and my love for the Science Fiction, Horror, Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense genres and how they inspire me to write.

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Alien, Character Development, Horror, Imposter Theme, Inspirations, Movies, Mystery, Science Fiction, Star Trek, Suspense, The 1970's, Thriller, Writing

Horror/Sci-Fi/Suspense Influences on TSJ Before the Age of Ten

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Horror/Sci-Fi/Suspense Influences on TSJ Before the Age of Ten

I recently published a blog piece celebrating my fiftieth year on the planet. In the article, I wrote about the books I read as a child under the age of ten. The intention was twofold: to inform people about the books that inspired a young boy to take on the monumental goal of writing science fiction thrillers (a task which took decades to achieve), and to implore parents to always buy books for their children.

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Agatha Christie, Awards, Carina Press, Horror, Imposter Theme, Inspirations, Mystery, Science, Science Fiction, Suspense, Technology, TechnoThriller, THE FREEZER, THE FURNACE, THE VOID

Original Concept Art for The Tanner Sequence

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The Furnace, The Freezer, The Void by TSJ

I wanted to showcase this incredible concept artwork by Nelson Housden for each book in The Tanner Sequence. Agatha Christie and Isaac Asimov inspired me to write these futuristic murder mysteries, published by Carina Press back in 2013, 2014, and 2015.  The Furnace was the first book I sold, back in 2012.

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