A.J. Thompson is a science fiction/fantasy author from California who has written over fifty short stories, including "Color Conformity," "Yet Another Reality," and "Swarm" (part of his Urban Prophets series). In 2004, Thompson's first novel, The Knack, was published, and it marked a decisive shift from short fiction to book-length material. In early 2005, his second novel, Time Chaser, was released, as well as a collection of his most popular short stories, titled The Midnight Recollections.
While he uses many of the tricks common in his chosen genre, Thompson's work tends to carry with it a personal touch that sets it apart from the mainstream. When asked during an interview whether he utilizes people and events from his own life in his writing, he responded that he prefers to keep his personal life completely apart from his literary excursions. He feels it's more challenging to write stories that seem as if they're being told from personal experience but which are actually pure fabrications.
Thompson's personal edge has long been the subject of much debate by online discussion groups, who tend to support opposite extremes regarding the subject matter of specific story-lines. 2002's Starship Earth, for example, was praised for its unique emotional take on the classic Eden theory; it was also criticized for its frank descriptions of nudity and certain specific sexual situations.
Perhaps the most effective example of Thompson's style is in 2004's The Knack, a contemporary fantasy novel that puts an entirely different spin on vampirism. The novel was first presented as an art community series which ran from the summer of '03 to the summer of '04, and garnered rave reviews throughout. The book version is supposedly a revised, "less offensive" version of the series.
Subject matter aside, it is the personal touch that seems to illicit the most reaction from Thompson's readers, good or bad---and he has said it is the readers' reactions he finds most interesting in regard to his work.
Besides his fiction work, A.J. Thompson has done a large amount of web design for small businesses, and has also worked with a number other authors including Steven L. Shrewsbury and Mark Sutton. From 2000-2003, he worked as a staff member for ShadowKeep magazine, and during the same period performed webmaster duties for the Zine Guild. He is a big fan of ambient trance music, specifically Steve Roach, and often writes to certain songs that match the specific scenes he's working on. His favorite authors include the following: Piers Anthony, Orson Scott Card, Thomas M. Disch, Graham Joyce, and Ray Bradbury.