Gordon Thomas Orr

Biography

Gordon Orr's novels are enjoyed on several continents and personal experience informs his writing; as a keen Mountaineer he has climbed in Africa, Britain, Europe, Canada and the Himalayas. He was a Patrol Officer in the British South Africa Police during the Rhodesian conflict based in Manicaland, Matabeleland and Mashonaland, often in the Zambezi Valley. Deployments were by tortuous road trip down the 2000 foot escarpment and across the hot dry valley on barely discernible tracks, in 4×4 Bedford RL trucks, or more enjoyably, occasionally by air. Foot patrol deployments were by police jet-boats on the great river and the hazards came as much from crocodiles, hippos, rhinos, elephants, buffaloes and lions as from insurgents. Big game was everywhere. Indeed, it frequently chased patrols up trees or into rivers to avoid it. Water had to be dug for, often 4 foot down in dry rivers , exposing just a saucer sized depression. It took hours to fill water bottles and annoyed Rhinos were prone to crapping in the holes. Gordon subsequently joined the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, being based in West Germany working on Chieftain Tank Fire Control Systems at a time when invasion by the Warsaw Pact was the major perceived world threat. The Armoured Workshop he was attached to also saw active service in Northern Ireland where he worked on remote-controlled "Wheelbarrow" and "Eager Beaver" bomb-disposal vehicles of the elite Explosive Ordinance Disposal "Felix The Cat" teams. Activities since leaving the British Army have centered around Oilfield and Airfield Maintenance in South Africa Libya and Canada. He is an active pilot and heavy goods driver and holds British and Canadian PPLs and Class 1 driving licences in both Countries.

Smashwords Interview

Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?
It was 'Through the garden gate,' a "Janet and John" childrens book. I was at kinder-garden and suddenly during playtime reading clicked with me. I could finally do it, slowly at first but with exhilaration and amazing acceleration once through the learning wall. I read the whole book by myself several times and reading has been one of my favourite occupations ever since. My Dad said you can learn how to do anything from books and he was pretty much right.
Your own books are pretty raunchy, Is there a particular reason for that?
Several I suppose. I'm a reader first and a writer second, and I like adventure novels that include romance and graphic sexual description. Like my Dad said, you can learn anything from books. What I learnt was that the whole business doesn't work unless both (or all) parties are having fun. My otherwise liberal Grandmother was a bit sniffy about the sexual scenes in Wilbur Smith's first novel "When the Lion Feeds," but aged sixteen I found them electrifying on several levels. There was eroticism, uncontrollable passion, guilt, anticipation, gratification and manipulation in just a few paragraphs. Love and sexual relationships trump greed and ambition as the prime human motivators every time. Wilbur Smith, Harold Robbins, Tony Park and Jilly Cooper all write sexual intercourse scenes graphically and well whereas John Grisham doesn't really include any sexual content but the most chaste, yet they are all fantastic Authors. Just personal preference from both a reading and writing perspective I suppose.
Read more of this interview.

Where to find Gordon Thomas Orr online

Books

This member has not published any books.