Welcome to another Meet the Editor! This week is Kammeran Hughes, assistant fiction and non fiction editor. Judging by that position you can tell he is, above all else, a big reader. Here is alittle bit about Hughes:
Kammeran Hughes is a junior at Lewis University, where he dual majors in
History and English with a concentration on creative writing. On campus, he also works as a tutor at Lewis University’s writing center. Off campus, he loves to read and write. His favorite book is The Count of Monte Cristo, perhaps because it is as long winded as he is. While he is not writing, he is trying to find a quiet place to read and sleep. This year he will also be taking a position on the JFR blog, so take a look at his pieces on there.
Read Hughes’ Q & A Below:
Who are you and what is your role in the Jet Fuel Review?
My name is Kammeran Hughes and I am an Assistant Fiction Editor and Assistant Creative Non-Fiction Editor.
What book might we find on your nightstand right now?
My nightstand is a bookshelf, so I reach for whatever draws my fancy that night. The books sitting on flat of the nightstand are One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest; a collection of traditional Irish Literature, called A Treasury of Irish Fairy and Folk Tales; and the history book dee British Empire.
If you had the chance to co-write with one author, who would you choose? Why?
I would choose Ray Bradbury. It took me a long time to realize I loved reading; I poured over books to kill time, not for real pleasure. When I read Fahrenheit 451, I learned that I loved reading, my soul took to it like a flame to books. It was a pleasure to read, and I just want more Bradbury, especially the thirty-year-old Bradbury of The Martian Chronicles, and Dandelion Wine.
Describe your perfect reading atmosphere.
Quiet. Not the uncomfortable silence of absolute minimal volume, where you can are acutely aware of the tinnitus in your ears and the blood in your veins, but the quiet of a secluded nook and a warm blanket.
What might your personal library look like?
My personal library is two sets of books, each containing an identical title list, but one is hard cover and the other is paperbacks.
If you could “re-make” a poorly written movie that was based on a book, what movie would it be?
The Gunslinger, even Idris Elba could not save it.
What piece of literature can you reread over and over again?
For shorter pieces I reread my Edgar Allen Poe collection; nearly every piece within is a winner for this prize. For novels, my favorite piece of literature to read again and again would be The Count of Monte Cristo.
Give us a quote from your favorite (or any) book/movie.
“The difference between treason and patriotism is only a matter of dates.” – Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo
If you were invited to have coffee with any fictional character, who would you most like to meet? Why?
The Count, of course. Are there any more dramatic and impressive dining scenes than those of the Count? The conversation, though my own contributions may be lacking in comparison, would be worth memorizing word for word.
Share your top five favorite pieces of writing (anything included, be it movies, books, etc.).
- The Count of Monte Cristo –Alexandre Dumas
- Fahrenheit 451 –Ray Bradbury
- The Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkien
- The Witcher series – Andrzej Sapkowski
- A Study in Scarlet –Arthur Conan Doyle