I recently had the opportunity to read and review Dan Berne’s book The Gods of Second Chances. Dan has graciously agreed to do a Q&A with me about his book. Thanks so much to Dan for his thoughtful answers. I also invite you to read a synopsis and my review of his book, which I highly recommend you put on your TBR pile.
Q&A with Dan Berne:
1. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you became a writer?
I’ve written stories since I was ten years old. I was the introvert in a family of seven kids in a relatively small house (our shared bedroom was wall –bed – bed – bed – wall). Reading books was my escape. In college and beyond, I focused on poetry, but turned to fiction and novel writing when I was forty. In poetry, every word and line break has to mean something, and you have a few lines to evoke a response from the reader. In the novel form, I loved being able to work with the arc of the story and the unfolding of characters.
2. What, in particular, drew you to Alaska and made you decide to use that setting for the book?
I had been up to Alaska kayaking and hiking. I knew that I wanted my protagonist to be a working class guy, and I was drawn to the life that I saw up there. The landscape is so compelling and really is almost a character in itself. Continue reading