Interview With Author Barri Bryan

Barri is a fellow author at eTp

She grew up during the thirties in a small town in West Texas. Life was simple then. She sensed there was a world beyond her limited horizon, but it seemed remote and far away. That horizon expanded and moved nearer when she discovered reading and books. When she was in the seventh grade, she found Emily Dickenson and fell in love with poetry. Since then, she's been an avid fan of rhyme and meter.

Today she is a wife, a mother of three, and a grandmother to seven wonderful grandchildren. She is also a former teacher and educator and a published author with over twenty novels, five books of poetry, numerous essays and short stories, and one how-to-write book to her credit.

Her writing career began late in life. She published her first poetry book in 1995.

She likes poetry, George Strait's music, old movies, and Earl Grey tea. Her hobbies are reading, quilting, sewing, knitting, crocheting, taking long walks, and growing house plants and herbs.

Barri is here to tell us about her book of poetry, What Will Suffice

Q) What is this work about?

A) The subject matter of these one-hundred poems is diverse and varied with vivid and recognizable impressions, originality of diction, and variance in tone. Each poem has a life of its own. The theme is the common thread of humanity that speaks to the heart through many forms, melodious language, and personal emotions. The author's devotion to craftsmanship lends immediacy and expressiveness to a wide variety of charming and introspective poetic images.

Q) Why did you write this?

A) That one came right out of left field. I can best answer that question by quoting one of the poems in What Will suffice.

Remission

It returns again from time to time,

This affliction to set to lilting rhyme

Sad and sundry discrepancies,

Along with assorted disparities

That dispute and differ – argue, debate.

Rhyme has potent power to medicate

Every paradox, each ambiguity

That wounds the poet’s soul in me.

Meter mitigates the endless quest,

Eases the pain that throbs in my breast,

Thus giving balance and symmetry,

To soothe the ache of incongruity,

The pen brings momentary cessation

And temporary amelioration.

There’s no permanent healing, not even in verse,

For a terminal blessing that’s also a curse.

Q) How long did this project take you?

A) I don’t just sit down and start a book of poetry. I write when something, or someone, inspires me to do so. This is a collection I wrote over a period of about three years.

Q) What is your favorite book?

A) Can I cheat a little and have two? Oh, thank you. My favorite non-fiction book is Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis. My favorite fiction book is titled Rossetti. It is a collection of Christina Rossetti’s poems. She lived from 1830 to 1894 and during that time wrote some of the most beautiful poetry ever pinned.

Q) Which is faster? A 1972 Gremlin full of drunken Russian clowns, or a 1968 VW van full of hippies and questionable smoke, and the windows are up?

A) Before I begin, I have to tell you, I operate mostly on hunches and premonitions. I have approached this from several skewed angles and I come back each time to the same crossroads of confusion. I know nothing about hippies and even less about Russian clowns. I question questionable smoke.  How drunk is drunken? AHA! I think I know the answer. The Gremlin is faster because it’s newer. How could a 1968 VW stay in the dust of a 1972 Gremlin? That is my story and I’m sticking to it.

Q) What’s your favorite movie?

A) My favorite movie is Now, Voyager. I first saw it in 1944. Oops, I telling my age.  

Q) What is the first creative thing you wrote? When did you write it?

A) I wrote my first poem when I was in the first grade. It wasn’t much as poems go – one of those moon-June, tune- croon things. But my mother and my dad liked it, and I thought it was a masterpiece. That was all that mattered then.

Q) Who is the person you most admire?

A) The person I most admire is my husband. He is my hero.

Q) What is the oldest thing you own?

A) I have my grandmother’s autograph book that she had when she was in high school in 1902. It has fallen apart, but my grandson used Photo Shop to take pictures of each page and make it readable again. I can’t read the original book, but I keep it and treasure it.

Q) Who is the greatest writer to ever live?

A. If anyone is deserving of that title, it’s The Apostle Paul for the inspiring epistles he wrote to the churches of the New Testament.

Q) Who would win in a fight, John Wayne or Clint Eastwood? Why?

A. Do you mean if they were fighting each other? I admit Clint Eastwood is a tough hombre and mighty handy with a gun. I am also convinced John Wayne is the fastest gun in the west and can lick his weight in wildcats. He is also dead…  After much consideration and a definite personal bias, I have to declare John Wayne the winner.

Q) What is your favorite poem? Why?

A) This is a tough one.  My favorite poem is Remember by Christina Rossetti.  I love its uneven rhythm and the words speak to my heart. If you ask me tomorrow I may give you a different answer, as my favorite poem changes often.

Q) What can we expect next from you?

A) If you are asking about my writing, I am now working on a contemporary romance. It’s titled Starting Over.  It’s the story of a middle-aged couple and their struggle to recapture the love they lost somewhere along the way. If this is a general question, I can’t answer it. I don’t know myself, what I will do next.

Thanks for dropping by Barri.

Thanks for inviting me. I had a great time.

Barri's book(s) can be found, among many other places, at the following links:

http://barribryan.com/

http://www.etreasurespublishing.com/what-will-suffice-by-barri-bryan/

Interview With Author Kamil Ali

First I should say Kamil is a fellow author at Etreasures Publishing

He was born in Kingston, a suburb of Georgetown, British Guiana, now renamed Guyana, after Independence in 1966. After attending Saint Stanislaus College and University of Guyana, he migrated to Canada in the early eighties and now resides in Ontario with his family.

Kamil is here to tell us about his novel,'The Initiates' - First book of 'The Appointed Collection' a paranomal thriller.

Q) What is your story about?

A criminal lawyer named, Karlis Stucka, spends a night of terror and experiences paranormal occurrences under the tutelage of Satan's First Dark Angel. Lucerifus, the name of the Dark Angel in human form, takes him through rigorous mental and physical training in preparation for the return of Jesus Christ. Karlis has a mandate to build and lead an army of Devil Worshippers by the turn of the century as religions' greatest nemesis, The Antichrist. 

Q) Why did you write this story?

I've always had a fascination with the unknown and read countless books on theories and imaginings of scholars and authors who portrayed vivid descriptions of a world just beyond our reach. This is my opportunity to share my own creation on the subject from a fictitious angle with the underlying theme of 'good ultimately overcoming evil'.

Q) How long did it take you to write it?

Interesting story here. I'd actually started my story with book three of the collection, named, 'Gateway To The Dark Side'. Halfway through the book, with its setting in North America, it became apparent that I needed to lay a foundation from the 'Old World'. I picked Latvia for its rich history and geographical location. After endless hours of research, I embarked on a novel made up of facts rolled together with fiction to lend credibility to the storyline. I called this book, 'The Order of The Mirror'. When I finished the book, I realized that..........you guessed it. I needed to have an even deeper base, hence, the creation of 'The Initiates'. It doesn't end there. I'd submitted the two books together and called them part one and part two. I'm grateful to my Publisher, Acquisitions Editor and everyone who had a hand in shaping my collection of books into a pride-filled and classy read.

Q) What is your favorite book?

I have a favorite author, as opposed to a favorite book. In my teen years, I read almost every book published by a British author named, Dennis Wheatley. Some of these books were made into movies with great actors who breathed life into the characters from the books. The genre?....Paranormal Occult.

Q) What is the worst smell in the world?

A dirty rat!.....No actually, rotted fish.

Q) What’s your favorite kind of animal?

Dogs - I had an Alsatian named Bruno. Very Intelligent and faithful.

Q) What is the first creative thing you wrote? When did you write it?

I wrote an essay a week in High School. In my mind, they were masterpieces. Unfortunately the entire collection was thrown out by my Mom when I left Guyana.

Q) Who is the person you most admire?

My father's Dad - He was the most remarkable person I've ever known. He had limited education, which was the norm for his generation. Kids started working early to help out the family's finances. Yet he ran a successful group of businesses, selling groceries, clothes, shoes, jewelry  - did I mention he was also a jeweler? He assembled two huge lightning plants and sold electricity to the local government. He installed a thirty-foot high wind-charger (windmill) and stored the electricity in a series of wet cell batteries. For a man who could barely read, he astonished everyone with his clear vision and logical foresight.

Q) What is the oldest piece of clothing you own?

A tie I brought back from Guyana when I returned from my Dad's funeral in 1986. I still use it. 

Q) Who is the greatest writer to ever live?

Charles Dickens

Q) What can we expect next from you?

Apart from the 'The Order of The Mirror' and 'Gateway to The Dark Side', I am currently writing a novel called, 'The Beggar', based on the poem of the same name in my first published book of poems, 'Profound Vers-A-Tales'. I'm writing this book for my wife. 'The Beggar' is her favorite poem. It tells the tale of a woman who is stricken with Alzheimer's after her only son abandons her, then her husband dies. She ends up on the streets, destitute and in search of her son, who ironically is also on a quest to find his mother after his wife abandons him with their two kids. It's a very sad story that evokes high emotions. I've seen people cry while reading this poem. The book will cut deeper into hearts.

Thanks for being with us, Kamil.

If you are interested in purchasing Kamil's book, The Initiates, it can be found, among many other places, at the following links:

http://www.amazon.com/Kamil-Ali/e/B00G1FIXAM

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-initiates-kamil-ali/1116998571?ean=2940045292870