Name – P.J. Berman
Book Title – Silrith series
P J Berman 
The Fun Quotient
Q.1 Tell us a little about yourself that not many of us know.
A. Hello everyone! Thank you so much for inviting me here! I am a fantasy and historical fiction author from Hertfordshire, England, UK. I grew up in Hemel Hempstead, then moved to the city of Plymouth, on the coast of England’s southwest peninsula. Since then I have moved away from England and settled in Wales, where I live in the rural county of Carmarthenshire with my wife, my daughter and our sometimes crazy but mostly lazy Labrador.
Q.2 If not an author, what would you have been?
A. I had a few ambitions before I first tried my hand at writing, but to focus on the main ones, as a child I wanted to work in a dinosaur museum, and in my early teenage years I wanted to be a racing driver.
Q.3 How many books are actually in your bookshelf/shelves right now?
A. Numbers beyond measure, although very few of them are mine. The vast majority belong to my two-year-old daughter. I think I’ve created a bookworm!
Q.4 What is your favorite genre, book, and author?
A. I mostly read fantasy and historical. At the moment, my favourite fantasy world to explore is the Shattered Sea series by Joe Abercrombie, whilst when it comes to historical fiction, I am currently enjoying re-reading Harry Sidebottom’s Warrior of Rome series.
Q.5 If you could be a character from a book for just one day who would you be and why?
A. Most of the people I read about seem to have really tough lives. I’m not sure I’d trade places with any of them! If I had to choose, I’d go for Maximus, one of the chief supporting character’s in Harry Sidebottom’s afore mentioned ‘Warrior of Rome’ series. He goes on dangerous adventures, but knows how to have fun. Still, as I said, his life is tough, so I’d rather meet him than actually be him.
The Author phase
Q.6 Are we expecting more books from you soon?
A. Yes, War of Mercy, the third book in the Silrith series, is due for release in 2021.
Q.7 Describe the journey of writing your book— Vengeance of Hope
A. I began writing Vengeance of Hope in February 2013. Initially I saw it as just a bit of fun, but I was quickly bitten by the writing bug.
Q.8 How did you select the names of your characters in your book?
A. It isn’t one singular process for me in every case, but in my fantasy work, there are characters from many fictional ethnicities, so with each of those I use two real languages to come up with character or place names for one fictional group. For example, in the Silrith series, many of the Bennvikan names have a combination of Welsh and Swedish inspirations, while the Hentani names are based on ideas from a mix of Indian and Japanese culture.
Q.9 What is that one piece of advice you wish you’d had when you first started writing?
A. Write more than two books before you release the first one. It gives readers more to get their teeth into while you produce more work.
Q.10 What advice do you have for the upcoming budding writers?
A. Keep going, never give up, and make sure you are doing this for fun!
Q.11 Do you have any unique writing habits?
A. I’m not sure. You’d have to get other writers to watch me write and see what they say!
Q.12 Did you face any difficulties while penning down your book?
A. I am a stay-at-home parent to my two-year-old daughter. That means I get very little writing time. It’s pretty much limited to when she’s asleep. So worth it though! I may be biased, but she’s a great kid, and she gives me so much joy.
Q.13 What is the most difficult thing while writing about the opposite gender?
A. I think portraying emotions was the hardest part. It took a few rewrites. That’s not necessarily connected with gender though. It’s more the case that different people show and experience their emotions in a variety of ways. It was a super fun challenge to create a strong, floored character who nevertheless has a moral compass, feels her emotions keenly and uses them as fuel to do what needs to be done.
Q. 14 Describe your exact feelings when your draft was accepted/ when you first saw the cover of your finished book.
A. Receiving a paperback copy of your book is always a thrill, even with subsequent books. Have you seen when footballers celebrate every goal like it’s their first one? That’s how I feel every time I see my books in print.
Q. 15 Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with negative feedback?
A. I read some of them, and I try to view any negative feedback as positivity in disguise. Even in the negative reviews, there is something you can learn as a writer, perhaps even more so than in those with higher ratings.
Q. 16 Where do you hope to take your writing in the future?
A. I have a long list of ideas that I want to turn into future books. Hopefully I’ll live long enough to write them all!
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Amazon – Silrith series
Goodreads – P J Berman
Blog – PJ Berman Books.com
Facebook – pjbermanbooks
Instagram – pjbermanbooks
Twitter – pjbermanbooks
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Thank You!
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