Charlotte Robinson is a television producer and author from the UK. Their debut novel, Mars One, is out on the 23^rd April 2026. We caught up with them to find out more.

How would you pitch Mars One to a fan of Star Trek?

I would pitch it the same way as I would to anyone: it’s an epic global thriller about a one-way colonisation mission to Mars and three unlikely heroes trying to save themselves, and the people they love, from disaster.

But I guess what might appeal to Star Trek fans in particular is that the novel centers around humanity’s inherent desire to “boldly go where no man has gone before”, as well as focusing on the ultimate costs of exploration, and the responsibilities we – as a species – have to not only the planet we choose to call home, but also to each other.

And how would you pitch it to someone who is more into fantasy than science fiction?

I’d say sadly there’s no dragons, but there is most definitely a hero’s quest at the very heart of it, along with intrigue, adventure, and an enigmatic cat.

Why should I read this book?

Because it might just make you think about your place in the world and realise that everyone can play a part in our planet’s future. And also, because it’s great fun and you’ll make a debut author incredibly happy!

Are we ever going to Mars?

Yes. I think it’s safe to say we will. Although how we will get there and who will ultimately be paying the price for it (both financially and ethically) is a very interesting and important question. A new space race is already upon us. And with private companies and wealthy individuals becoming more and more imbedded within national space programmes, as well pursuing their own missions and agendas, I think it will also happen sooner than we think; especially if there is power and profit to be gained from it.

(Note: the first steps to Mars are already very much underway, as NASA’s current Artemis programme is launching new lunar exploration missions as we speak, and that is being used as a road test for future Martian exploration!)

What is the most interesting sci-fi element in your books? Why?

I think the most interesting sci-fi element in the book is that everything within it is possible: it’s fiction based on science and technology that we have right now. If someone had the means and the guts, they could launch a ship to Mars tomorrow (although, whether it would get there in one piece, is another thing entirely!). But probably the most “sci-fi” of all elements in the novel is a device within the narrative that runs off of the body’s very own bioelectricity. Bio-energy harvesting is an area of science that is moving rapidly fast and some of my initial research into the magic of bioelectricity was sparked (pardon the pun) by working with Naomi Alderman on the television adaptation of her incredible novel THE POWER.

If anyone is interested in more information around electricity within the body and the new science of our body’s ‘electrome’, I’d highly recommend Sally Adee’s book WE ARE ELECTRIC, which shows how concepts that have previously only been the stuff of science fiction are now becoming a reality. All of which feels pleasingly circular when you realise that it was Galvani’s studies of bioelectricity that inspired Mary Shelley to write the very first work of science fiction: the incomparable FRANKENSTEIN. Science inspires fiction which, in turn, becomes science.

How long does it take you to get to a first draft?

This book was a long time in the making, as I originally pitched it as a television show when I was working as a script editor. So, it was several years before I attempted to write it as a novel. When I did finally start, it took me about three years to get a full first draft, as I was also holding down a day job, and then I worked on it for another year, rewriting and editing, before I was ready to send it out into the world.

What’s your favourite joke or pun in the book?

It’s not a joke, per se, but as a sci-fi fan and self-declared nerd I had fun dropping in some pop-culture references and nods to my favourite films, TV series, or books: MEN IN BLACK inspired a really key element to the plot; a character makes a dig at the THE MARTIAN (a book and film I hugely love and respect, by the way!); there’s Star Wars references; a Game of Thrones reference; Pixar references; also a few in-jokes from the TV industry about self-important producers (being very aware that I am a producer myself!). And, of course, a cat is key to the story, so I couldn’t avoid a pussy pun.  And watch out for the bit where a character quite literally lets the cat out of the bag. I shamefully made myself chuckle with that one.

What is science fiction for?

I slightly touched upon this already, but I think it’s for three key things:

1. First and foremost: to entertain. That’s what stories of any kind are for. To tell stories, and to entertain other people with them, is the most basic of human instincts. It’s the way we connect as a species.
2. To make us question who we are, and where we’re headed. What science fiction is brilliant at doing is allowing us to slightly distance ourselves from reality, so that we can think more clearly and critically about the human condition and the world that we find ourselves in. And when we’re able to ask questions, we’re also then able to change things.
3. To inspire: so many innovations, technological breakthroughs, and even moments of political change, have been inspired by works of science fiction. If MARS ONE inspires someone to question things, to make a change (however big or small), or even to become an astronaut, a coder, or an environmental activist, I would be thrilled and honoured beyond words.

Mars Attacks or Mars Bars?

Mars Attacks! (I’m not a huge fan of caramel)

Dragons or Death Stars?

Dragons

Truth or Beauty?
Truth. Always. Even if it’s painful.

Mars One by Charlotte Robinson (Bantam, £16.99) is published on 23^rd April 2026.