About Me

Hi, 

Nice to meet you. 

My name is Steve Cotterill, and I'm a writer, poet, gamer, and a few other things besides. I live in Bournemouth, I'm single, and I live alone. I'm an introvert and enjoy my own company a great deal. I'm working on various projects and am in therapy at present. Part of what I'm trying to resolve is a feeling that I am Trans, or at least non-Binary, and the feeling of having been an outsider for most of my life. I don't believe I was born into the wrong body (though it is tempting to think that this whole thing is a cosmic joke), but that my life has alienated me from a lot of things other, hell most, people take for granted.  That's why I write, and who I write for, and I want to explore those themes through my work. At the risk of sounding pretentious, I want to carry a candle for the lost, to offer solace in a world that doesn't really care about us. 

My Amazon store is here: My books

I work at the Arts University in Bournemouth, and while my opinions in no way reflect the university's I'm very proud to work there. Outside of work I play in a game of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, run a game of Vampire: The Dark Ages, regularly attend Stanspit Writers' Group, but also spend a lot of time by myself, working on writing and gaming things. I love cats and try to get to the local cat café regularly to fuss the occupants (or at least the feline occupants, fussing random humans tends to be frowned upon), and just admire them. A sleeping cat is a thing of wonder, almost as much of one as a cat that's awake and asking for fusses. I know this sounds a bit daft but looking into a cat's eyes is the nearest I've come to encountering the divine - however you define it. 

I read a lot, though at present most of what I read is therapy books (which makes me tons of fun at parties, as I'm sure you can imagine). I love Neil Gaiman, Kim Newman, Emma Newman (no relation), Charles Stross, Jaine Fenn, and Caitlin R Kiernan's work. I am here for creepy houses, alternate histories, forgotten gods, and feminism. I love heroes who aren't gung-ho but careful and cautious, who live in worlds where the people who rush in get their heads chopped off. I love characters who are down at the bottom and fight their way to the top, succeeding against all odds. I am trying to read more spy fiction because I'm trying to spread my wings a bit. My favourite roleplaying games are the old World of Darkness ones, with Vampire being top of my list, and Mage being the one I want to try most because I've never really played it.  I don't just play RPGs I try to make things for them too and have a couple of settings that I want to eventually publish as games in their own right. 

I don't watch much telly but adored the Sandman adaptation and the Critical Role Legend of Vox Machina cartoon, as well as Paper Girls. I'm very much about SF and Fantasy, as you may have guessed. I tend to listen to more radio and a lot of music. 

My politics are leftwing/green, and I believe it's imperative to act now to maintain an equilibrium that allows for human life on the Earth. I'm trying to go veggie and to cut down on my carbon footprint as much as I can. 

I'm a baby Pagan... by which I mean that I'm starting to realise how little I actually know about my spirituality. I feel that black cats and blue dragons may well be totem beasts for me and they make me happy. My beliefs are mostly shaped by environmental beliefs and factors - I believe in Gaia as the World and the Earth Mother, and feel there must be a balancing male force for the sea or sky (but don't want to worship Uranus given that he was a raping bastard in Greek myths. I believe the planet is vital and want to live in a way that supports and creates good things with the biosphere, honouring the spirit of the Earth. 

Sooo, I hope that doesn't frighten you off. If you're still here, welcome and I hope you enjoy my pieces.