Interview with A. R. Silverberry

I have a special guest on the blog today, fellow fantasy author A. R. Silverberry. He’s here to talk about the genre we love and his latest book, The Stream. Please give him a warm welcome!

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What genre do you write and why do you like it?

I love being swept into strange worlds, where creatures and heroes cut a wide swath and battle with swords and magic. If a writer can bend my mind and ignite my imagination, all the better. So you know if I was going to write anything, it had to be fantasy. What I love the most about the genre is that you can inspire people to believe in themselves. The hero or heroine is up against world-shattering power. If they can triumph, so we can we.

 

I couldn’t agree more. Tell us about your hero, Wend.

He symbolizes innocence, the way we all are, thrown into the flux of life, trying to understand our existence and survive the unexpected curveballs that are thrown at us. He symbolizes the spirit in all of us to grow, to love, to be wise.

 

What was your favorite part about writing this book? Least favorite part?

One of the characters, Dory, insisted on being different than I originally intended. Fortunately, I got out of his way and let him do his thing. Completely unexpected was the truculent rooster that came along with him, dripping attitude.

As I approach completion of a novel, I’m down to making decisions I’ve been struggling with. I’m plagued with a million questions. Does that scene need to be revised, or is it just fine as is? Is that sentence clear? I pick and pick and pick, putting in commas, taking them out, putting them back in, etc. After The Stream was supposedly done, I ran a sentence change by my copyeditor, to make sure the punctuation was correct. My point: ending is harder than beginning. My father, a Renaissance man if ever there was one, used to say, “It takes two people to paint a painting. One person holds the brush. The other bangs him over the head with a hammer when it’s done!”

 

Haha, I can relate. Are you working on anything new? Can you tell us a bit about it?

I never reveal a plot before something is released. Call it a character flaw! But I’ll say this: It’s a dystopic, young adult, sci-fi, fantasy trilogy.

 

Sounds intriguing! Now, be honest, what is the geekiest thing about you? 

My love for classical music is so intense it seems like I was born in another century. When I was in high school, I risked my health delving in the mold-invested cellar below our garage, pulling out old 78s of Rubinstein, Heifetz, and Horowitz. Even now, my wife will be singing popular songs, and I’m whistling something from Bach or a Mozart concerto.

 

Everyone seems to complain when their favorite book is made into a movie or mini series. What is your favorite movie based on a book?

New writers long to sell the movie rights. Established writers hold their noses and pray! A movie is usually a guarantee the book will get ruined. There are exceptions, To Kill a Mockingbird being one of them. Who could complain about Gregory Peck?! And Elmer’s Bernstein’s music score was so haunting. Here’s some geeky trivia: Bernstein used the Lydian mode in that theme.

 

Thanks for the tidbit! Now, since we are writers, what would you like your tombstone to say?

He loved, he inspired, he made it to Aerdem!

 

Love it! Thanks for your time today!

 

The Stream:

What if your world was six miles wide and endlessly long?

After a devastating storm kills his parents, five-year-old Wend awakens to the strange world of the Stream. He discovers he can only travel downstream, and dangers lurk at every turn: deadly rapids, ruthless pirates, a mysterious pavilion that lures him into intoxicating fantasies, and rumor of a giant waterfall at the edge of the world. Defenseless, alone, with only courage and his will to survive, Wend begins his quest to become a man. Will tragic loss trap him in a shadow world, or will he enter the Stream, with all its passion and peril?

Part coming-of-age tale, part adventure, part spiritual journey, The Stream is a fable about life, impermanence, and the gifts found in each moment.

Purchase The Stream in both e-book and paperback at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Also by A. R. Silverberry: Wyndano’s Cloak on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. You can also get a limited first edition hardback, signed or unsigned, directly  from the author.

 

Follow A. R. Silverberry: 

Website

Facebook

Twitter

 

About A. R. Silverberry:

A. R. Silverberry writes fiction for adults and children. His novel, WYNDANO’S CLOAK, won multiple awards, including the Benjamin Franklin Award gold medal for Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction. He lives in California, where the majestic coastline, trees, and mountains inspire his writing. THE STREAM is his second novel.

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