26 Feb 2024
Tell us a little about yourself and your background!
As a high school student, I realized that writing was something I liked and enjoyed. So I wrote for the school newspaper, then for the local paper, and later as a student for a large national daily newspaper. Then I wrote short stories that were published in anthologies. Over time I developed the idea for “THE SUPERFLARE”, my first long novel. It was published in 2022.
About myself: I have studied German Literature, Political Sciences and History. Today I live and work in Berlin. I am married and have two children.
When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
Well, I didn’t want to become a writer in the first place, but I loved reading and telling stories, e.g. to my sons. I worked as a journalist and manager, among other things. Along the way, I started writing short stories, and finally, I decided to write a novel on a subject that had been on my mind for a long time: the consequences of the triumph of AI for the future of mankind.
Do you have any unique or quirky writing habits?
I suppose this question can only be answered by my family.
Have you experienced writer’s block? How did you get through it?
So far I have not really experienced writer’s block. Sometimes the words simply do not flow. Then I get up and do something else. But finally, I always returned to my desk to continue. I went back in the text, read some earlier chapters, polished something here and there – and sooner or later the flow was back. And often I have learned that the flow of words did stop simply because I was walking in the wrong direction.
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
I started with a basic story idea and plot outline. As the writing progressed, the story became more and more complex, and it was quite a challenge to keep track of all the different strands of the story and the many characters and weave them together in a meaningful and exciting way. I also had to accept that the characters had developed a life of their own, so I just followed them and the flow to find out where it would take me. After having finished the first draft, the re-write process began to make sure that every piece fell into the right place.
https://iwordbooks.com/InterviewsPreview/272/The-IWORDBOOKS-Interview—Andrew-G–Berger