An Interview with Brenda Perlin

Brenda Perlin

In an Indie environment completely dominated - nay, saturated - by fantasy, sci-fi, YA, and horror, it was a pleasure to bump into Homewrecker, a no holds barred account of the simple failure of a marriage; a story firmly entrenched in bitter reality.

Intrigued, I investigated further and discovered that it was written by Brenda Perlin, in the tradition of Elizabeth Wurzel and other writers of similar raw boned ilk: Writers prepared to give of themselves and their stories in order to improve the understanding of our our social reality rather than escape from it by creating alternative worlds. 

This book is no holds barred stuff, written in bleak, dispassionate, matter-of-fact, almost documentary style and I approached Brenda in similar fashion. 

I was reminded of the magnificent Woody Allen film "Manhattan", particularly the scene where Allen confronts his ex-wife, played by Meryl Streep about a book she plans to write about the failure of their marriage. In Homewrecker, Brenda shows the same clinical restraint, the same chilling rapacity, and the same ruthless, inarguable power, leaving no need for anger, rage or recrimination: The power of the written word being much mightier than the sword.

Manhattan

Her blog is essential reading each week as she goes into great detail and discusses the stories behind the story. Eager for a natter, I picked up the Wizphone and caught up with Brenda in downtown Orange County, California. Here's what she had to say while she sat amidst the orange groves,  with the smell of eucalyptus in the air and surrounded by, what I perceived to be, the chirping of a milion Cicadas.

Tell us a little about yourself, Brenda.

Thank you so much for even wanting to hang out with me for a while. How cool are you! This is all new to me. Before this I was just your average “hausfrau” living in Orange County. How quickly things change. I can get used to all of the flattery. No bad reviews please, I have thin skin!

Those Real Housewives of Orange County -
Top Rated British Afternoon TV

I am big into fitness and an avid reader...I know that is not too thrilling but I never said I was a party girl! Writing is not just a passion but a necessity. I would probably be a basket case without this outlet of spilling my guts all over the world wide web.

Tell us about Home Wrecker? What made you write it? Where are its influences? In what tradition does it fall?

Lots of information about Homewrecker is readily available on my blog and website.

I'm an avid reader, Brenda. At least once a week.

Are you, Wiz? I'm so pleased.

I don't miss it. I have it on all sorts of alerts. I love this kind of stuff.

Thank you! :-) Here's the website for you readers. I hope they can join us.

http://www.homewreckerthebook.com/

and here's the book cover.

Is that you on the cover, Brenda? Apparently there's a big debate and you aren't saying?

Hahahahah...that's true, Wiz. I'm not saying.

I got the title Home Wrecker from one of my ex-mother in law’s best friends. She used to call me Home Wrecker because she didn’t like all the attention I was getting from the elderly gentlemen at Leisure World!!

At that time, the thought of me being anything but a good girl seemed absurd. I really was a goodie two shoes!

This is a true life story, but names and a few circumstances have changed to protect...mostly myself but also the innocent and not so innocent.

I first started writing this story when I was just approaching thirty and newly engaged. I thought I would write about what a rip off the wedding business was. I wanted to highlight how you can get suckered into spending, unnecessarily.

A very expensive wedding.

After the wedding I buried my story in a drawer. Then 16 years or so later when things got ugly with my husband...I mean really ugly... I decided to pick this story back up. There were many circumstances that led me to let it all out in the open. 

I won’t give the whole story away but I think my husband got what was justified.

How faithful to the real story have you been? Have you given in to the temptation to dramatize? To exaggerate? Or have you played it straight.

Funny you should use the word “faithful” considering my book title. Was that just a slip of the tongue? I wish I could call my book “Faithful.” I could walk around with my head held high but unfortunately Home Wrecker was the most appropriate title I could come up with.

I haven’t really needed to dramatize this story AT ALL because the drama was never ending. In fact it is still going on.

What sort of reactions have you had? Have you had any flakes?

Actually, I didn’t expect to be as well received as I have been. I find that people tend to make excuses for what I have done. I never thought you could leave your husband for another man and get praises but I have. Go figure!

As far as flakes (I can’t pass that one up) I have had a couple of friends that have been pretty disappointing, an editor that seemed to miss as many typos as I did and a publishing company that are scam artists. Yes, I have come across a few flakes!

Was writing Home Wrecker cathartic? What does your ex-husband think of it?

Writing Home Wrecker was better than therapy or an expensive bottle of booze!!! Writing your life story after people have dirtied up your good name is as cathartic as it can get. 

This way I am able to seek revenge and also have the last word....

Oops..I almost forget to answer your question about what my ex-husband thinks. I am sure he is not at all happy. After you read it, you will understand. No, I am sure he is not happy at all. I am just flattered that he bought the book

You're a popular and consistent blogger. What advice have you for young writers who are linking their work and their blog as you do? How do you get people reading your blog

Now that you mention it, I am starting to have a little bit of writers block. How can you blog when you are out of words? There lies the problem. Actually I could use a little advice around now. I am always open to suggestions!!!

A grumpy good ol' boy reader kidnaps you in the street, throws you in the back of a van and locks you in his cellar. However, his wife, who likes your book and is planning to off her husband, sneaks into the cellar and offers you three books, two cd's and a DVD. What would they be?

Now that is funny! This question was just getting exciting until the bit about the books. I thought it was an invitation to something...hahahaha....Okay, let me think...books

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides

Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy

Barbara Streisand Ballad from Prince of Tides Film

Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

JD Salinger

As far as CD’s, I think one of the two most brilliant albums of all time is 

Pearl Jam’s Ten 

Pearl Jam

U2’s October

On DVD I will always be in love with Cinema Paradiso. I love a good story with heart!

Cinema Paradiso trailer

Where next for Brenda Perlin and her fans? (Including yours truly!)

I am glad you asked, if not I would have had to thrown it in somewhere. Thank you for that! I am actually working on a sequel to Home Wrecker which I am calling - 

Home Wrecker Redemption

Hopefully by the time I finish, this girl will have received her fair share of absolution.

Brenda, it has been an honour and a privilege to speak to you and I hope that you sell a bunch of books in the coming year.

Without a doubt I want to thank you Wiz for a clever Q & A and your interest in my book. I am so elated that you have followed my blog posts!

Don't be a stranger, Brenda!

I won't, Wiz.

Wizard Watchers can find out more about Brenda Perlin here!

Links:

Amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=brenda+perlin

BarnesandNoble.com:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/home-wrecker-brenda-perlin/1111340083?ean=9781462653898

Website:

http://www.homewreckerthebook.com

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Home-Wrecker/166853390108387

Goodreads:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15825106-home-wrecker

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/HomeWreckerbook

Dont forget to pick up the Indielit Scrapbook - 110 Indielit Paperbacks for gifts this Christmas! Top Right at the top!

Guest Interview: R.Kyle Hannah!

It's my distinct pleasure to introduce Wizardwatchers to R. Kyle Hannah, this week's guest interviewee. He's an American new wave Sci Fi author and alternative historian and here's what he had to say to Green Wizard about himself and his current projects.

R Kyle Hannah

Tell us about yourself. Where do you live? Who are you?

My name is R. Kyle Hannah and I live in the suburbs of Birmingham, Alabama.
In my real job-the one that pays the bills-I am an Officer in the US Army;
been doing that for over 26 years as a reservist or on Active Duty.  I am
married, with two kids, and I'm looking forward to retirement in three
years.  

I started writing in Jr. High (so many years ago) to pass the time because Iwas BORED!  It seemed a better alternative than to be sent to the office.
My imagination, fueled by undiagnosed ADD, leaped from space to earth to, well, to wherever!  I wrote it all down and still have those stories.  Most
are absolutely God Awful, but one day I may salvage the better aspects and write a story from all that.  It is fun to go back and read them and
remember those days...

My website is www.rkylehannah.com Your readers can follow me on twitter @rkhannah or on Facebook at R. Kyle Hannah - Writer


Tell us a bit about your book?

Time Assassins is published through a variety of retailers shortly. 

My latest novel is called TIME ASSASSINS and you could say its a cross  
between Quantum Leap and Time Cop.  The famed Assassins Guild is now in the 23rd Century and has time travel at its disposal.  The new charter of the guild is to ensure that the best possible history for mankind exists; so if it means going back and stopping a dictator-or maybe even saving one for the greater good-then the Assassins go back in time.

Time travel and alternative history books have been done before, but I wanted to do something unique.  I researched actual historical events-like JFK, Lincoln, the Magna Carta signing-and then sent the Assassins back toensure that history turned out as WE know it; the alternative history is the other timeline.  So, I got a little historical fact in there and also had fun creating a completely different timeline.

TIME ASSASSINS is my second novel.  My first novel is TO AID AND PROTECT,
I wrote it in AFghanistan in 2003 and its a good first effort.  Lets just say I've learned quite a bit since then and I'm getting better with each project.  

That's a lovely cover!  Have you a writing routine? A set wordage per day? Or do you binge until its all out?

 I wish I did have a writing routine, but there just aren't enough hours in the day.  My goal is 1000 words a day and for a while I hit that pretty regularly, that's before work set in.  Do I binge?  If I'm  on a roll and the words are coming, then yeah, I'll write til the keyboard is smoking, or my hand cramps if I'm writing with pen and paper.

Neal Schon of Journey with amazing 'fro.

What would you rather be? A best selling writer or a major rock
musician?

Funny you should ask.  I started writing silly little stories in Jr. High, but really honed my skills by writing lyrics.  I play a little guitar and piano, so in High School I got together with a few friends and wrote a few songs...I still have those old silly stories and the lyrics to many many
songs. But honestly, I think I'd rather be a best selling author...the hours are better.

I think I'd rather be the lead guitarist in a rock band! Haha. Who are your influences as a writer? Who are your favourite authors?

 I've read Heinlein, Clark, and Asimov and was always blown away at the worlds they could describe; Starship Troopers was fantastic and Childhood's End is still one of my favorites.  The movie Starship Troopers was horrible but the book...I've read it at least a dozen times.  Today, I read everything by John Scalzi and William C. Dietz...they are definitely my
favorites.

Arnie and the amazing JLC

I really enjoyed Starship Troopers! Take three books, two CD's and one DVD away with you. What would they
be?

Three books? hmmm.  There is an old Buck Rogers book I've read a dozen times, I can't remember the author...but its the classic tale (not the outer space TV show) and I absolutely love it!  (great, now I want to go and drag it out again).  Starship Troopers would be the second and Old Man's War by
Scalzi would be the third.  Old Man's War is such a unique perspective and
story that I could read that (and the entire series) over and over.
Two CDs...thats a little easier.  Anything by Journey (preferably a greatest hits compilation) and the early stuff from Night Ranger.  Yes, I'm a child
of the '80s and I love it!


The DVD is easy, TRUE LIES.  That is one of my favorite movies...James
Cameron did a fantastic job!

E-publishing boom toy

How are you finding e-publishing? What do you see as the major
challenges?

I find myself going back and forth between ebooks and paper books.  I love
the convenience of having several books on my iPad, but there is nothing
like holding a book in your hands- especially your own!
The major challenge I see is the flooding of the market.  Anyone these days-talented or not-can write and publish a book.  The problem is-and I did this for my first novel-they rush to get it out there without going through a lot of necessary steps; editing, proofing are good examples.  eBooks are cheap and easy to obtain, but sometimes you get what you pay for...something you get into a few pages and then just delete it because the editing is horrible or non-existent.   

Now, on the flip side of that, you could find a masterpiece because I'I've started marketing TIME ASSASSINS...you learn so much the more you immerse yourself in the world of writing.Ive met some really talented people since.

What are your plans for the future?

 I have three years left in the Army then I'm going to find a job in the
private sector and maybe, just maybe, realize its time to grow up.  Ha ha, I
doubt that!  Seriously, I'm going to write when I can, get my kids grown
and out of the house, and enjoy life.  If, somewhere along the way, I get my
15 minutes of fame, then I'll enjoy that too!

Lost City of Atlantis

Tell us about your current work in progress?

I have several story lines in various stages, including a sequel to TIME
ASSASSINS.  What I've been working on is called ATLANTIS FALLING, its
another time travel story mixed with all of the myth and mystery of
Atlantis.  I've written a few rough chapters of that and the story is coming
along.  I'm also branching out and I've begun work on a screenplayadaptation of TIME ASSASSINS.  Its very different from the steps of writing
a novel and I've already learned why the movies are so different from the
books. We'll see how that goes.


Mr Hannah, thanks for speaking to Green Wizard today.

Thank you, Wiz.