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What compels a U.S. author to write a novel set in Luxembourg? These and other questions I put before John T. Cullen in our interview for Luxembourg Word. Not only did he answer that question, but he went on to discuss his childhood in Gasperich, and divulged why he applied for Luxembourg citizenship.
John T. Cullen, what is your connection with Luxembourg?
My mother was Luxemburgish, my father a U.S. Army soldier. They met in Frankfurt and married in 1948. I was born 1949 in Nürnberg. My parents separated, and my mother took me to her parents' home in Gasperich (Lux.). I attended school there until fourth grade. Luxembourgeois was the first language I spoke.
Your real name is Jean-Thomas Cullen, but you write under three author names…
…Right. I write in three main genres, as distinguished by the various author names. I write SFFH novels as John Argo. Even as a child in Luxembourg, I was actually known as John T. Cullen. I use that name for thrillers (e.g., Valley of Seven Castles) and for nonfiction. Jean T. Cullen or Jean-Thomas Cullen is my name for romantic stories, poetry, and some mainstream fiction.
Is writing your main profession in life?
I've been a writer all of my life. I wrote my first poem at age 7 here in Gasperich. I completed my first full novel as a teenager, age 19. As a soldier stationed in Kaiserslautern (FRG), I had already written ten novels by age 30. As a matter of fact, I am finally publishing that teen SF novel as we speak, fifty years after finishing it. By now I've written about fifty books. I also worked for many years as a technical writer and editor. Most of my technical writing was in the computer systems development and aerospace industries.
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