Robert J. Lloyd grew up in the London suburbs, south of the river, and then in Sheffield.
At school he wanted to be an artist, thinking he was going to be the next great English painter. Robert did a BA degree in Fine Art, in Coventry, but moved more into art theory, ideas, and writing.
It was during his study for an MA in the History of Ideas, in Newcastle, that he discovered Robert Hooke's Diary, detailing his work as Curator of Experiments of the Royal Society, and as architect of the new London, after the Fire. The ideas and characters that Robert came across stayed with him; years of tinkering resulted in The Bloodless Boy and its sequel, The Clockwork Assassins.