Were you a big dinosaur kid growing up?
I was a dinosaur maniac from about two years old: I guzzled picture books about them. Tricaretops were my favourite and still are: I mean, three horns and a built-in shield—that’s evolutionary perfection. My family encouraged me in my obsession and then regretted it. When I was about three, we lived in a small cottage in an ex-mining village rural in Northumberland, with stone walls which were a “feature” as real estates say. One morning my Mum woke up to find I’d got up two hours early and made a lovely surprise for her: I’d created a vast dinosaur panorama with crayons. There were triceratops, trees, T-Rexes and many lava-spewing volcanoes. My Mum wasn’t nearly as delighted as I’d hoped—it’s murder getting crayon out of stone.
Dinosaurs, sharks, trucks, or trains?
No, I’m not giving up dinosaurs, sharks, or trains. You can melt down all trucks if you like, but the other three are - for different reasons - some of my favourite things in the world and I won’t let you take them from me.
Do you think you’d be able to survive if dinosaurs still roamed the earth?
I have a terrible attention span so I’m pretty sure I’d see something shiny, wander in its direction and get snatched from the sky by a pterodactyl. By age two, probably. I wouldn’t even be able to delight my cavewoman mother with a cave painting.
If Jurassic Park were real, would you visit?
It would be very hard to stop me, but I wouldn’t be there on the first day. I’d probably wait for a few tourist groups to go, return uneaten, then book my ticket. I do have a healthy respect for deadly animals. I’m a diver and I love sharks, but I keep my distance.
Were there any other stories on your mind when you were writing this or coming up with the various names?
Not really, as far as I can remember. In fact, although you’ve learnt I was a dinosaur geek, I had no plans of writing about them. But I was challenged to write an alternative history and I thought this was just about as alternative as I could plausibly go and it was an exciting challenge. One thing that always strikes me about nature is that it’s beautiful and horrifying. Most creatures live in a state of near constant dread over potential predator attack. It looks like pure hell being a rabbit or fish, constantly twitching and darting away from threats. Humans are incredibly lucky to have freed themselves from most of the dangers of nature “red in tooth and claw,” as good old Tennyson put it. I wanted to write a story where the predators were simply too powerful for us to overcome.
So the meteor misses, 66 millions years pass… what does the world look like in 2026?
Well, actually, in my head this story IS in 2026. Dinosaurs are so huge and destructive that men are never able to build lasting settlements and achieve societies. Humans stay trapped in this brutal reality, just like most other species. I’m sure an anthropologist could tell me why I’m wrong about this, but I like it as a thought experiment. I don’t think advanced civilisations were inevitable.
How many times has this story been rejected by other markets?
Twice, I think. It’s such an unusual story that I haven’t sent it out to many because I couldn’t imagine it fitting in everywhere. Then a friend sent me your call for stories on this theme and I did a happy dance, because I thought it would work for you. And I’m thrilled it has!
What’s a great short story you’ve read recently?
I adore The Gaijin Juan Quezato by Michael Barbato-Dunn. Full disclosure: I’m in a writing group with him so I got to read it before publication, but it stole my heart in the first paragraph: “I do not want to go to Winter Ball with the gaijin Juan Quezada. I know him to be a carouser, a malcontent, a fornicator. Worst of all, he is not serious about baseball.” It’s a road trip/ odd couple/ baseball story, none of which interest me in the slightest, but the two characters are so vivid and beautifully drawn that I was besotted with them and their voyage of self-discovery. Do yourself a favour and read it here: https://thetwinbill.com/the-gaijin-juan-quezada/
What book are you reading right now?
I’m re-reading Martin Amis’ “Time’s Arrow”. It’s a story told in reverse time (not just non-chronological - time actually moves backwards and the laws of the universe are inverted) which dazzled me 25 years ago. I recently wrote a short story inspired by his technique, and found it gruelling at 300 words, so have been reading his novel again and feeling awed by what Amis achieved. It has one of the most extraordinary sequences in literature, the real purpose of the whole reverse time trick. Amis is always a great entertainer as a writer but this is where he gained immortality.
Do you have anything else you’d like to share?
You wouldn’t ask that question if you knew me. I am an enthusiast by nature and constantly haranguing people. I’ll rattle off a few recommendations. Backrooms is one of the best horror movies I’ve seen in years and I’d urge everyone to go and watch it. They should also believe the hype about Widow’s Bay, which is virtuosically written and genuinely terrifying and hilarious, a rare combination indeed. And read my story about a lonely kid in eighties Britain and his unlikely feline friend, The Wild Ones. It just won the Columbia Journal Prose Prize and I’ll be sharing it very soon in my newsletter - www.jaimegill.substack.com. Where I share many many other things. If you’re still reading there’s a chance you’ll enjoy it and its totally free and non-spammy.