Steve Berry |
Funny, handsome, and a terrific novelist … that’s our friend Steve Berry. This man is incredible. He writes thrillers so popular that more than 21 million copies have been sold in 51 countries around the world. All of his books resonate with history and real-life secrets that his series character Cotton Malone uncovers in riveting adventures. Steve not only wins literary awards, he’s a #1 New York Times bestseller. You don’t want to miss his new one, The Lost Order.
Steve’s suspenseful new tale |
We Rogues admire him greatly, but not only because of his books. How did he find the time to help found ThrillerFest and the International Thriller Writers professional association? With his wife, Elizabeth, he’s also created History Matters, a foundation dedicated to historic preservation for which they’ve personally raised more than a million dollars. Plus, he serves on the Advisory Board for the prestigious Smithsonian Libraries.
In an effort to uncover the real Steve Berry, we asked him to step into the Rogue Limelight and answer ten questions he’s probably never been asked in an interview.
Steve & Elizabeth Berry |
Thanks, Steve! You’re Rogue!
Rogues: Which is harder as you approach a Cotton Malone novel: writing the first or last sentence?
Steve: The last. It’s a long, bumpy road from that first sentence to the end.
Rogues: What’s your favorite word?
Steve: Winning.
Rogues: Where do you like to write?
Steve: In my office, at home, at the same desk I’ve owned for decades.
Rogues: What do you do when you need to take a break from writing?
Steve: Aggravate my wife, Elizabeth. It seems
to always do the trick.
Two booklovers: Young Steve & his father, Sam Berry |
Rogues: If you could have lived in a different time period, what would that be?
Steve: The Dark Ages, which were anything but dark.
Rogues: What’s your favorite drink?
Steve: Cranberry juice (with a splash of lime).
Rogues: When you were ten years old, what did you want to be when you grew up?
Steve: A doctor. It didn’t work out that way, though.
Rogues: Describe your very first car.
Steve: A white, 1965 Ford Galaxy. My mother and I shared it.
Rogues: Who’s your literary hero?
Steve: A man named Frank Green, who taught me how to teach myself the craft of writing.
Steve’s new paperback |
Rogues: Do you write what you know or what you want to know?
Steve: Neither. I write what I love. That’s always the best advice.
You don’t want to miss Steve’s latest paperback release, The 14th Colony, and a new hardcover he’s part of, coming June 13th — MatchUp: The Battle of the Sexes Just Got Thrilling! It’s a collection of short stories in which he and Diana Gabaldon bring together Cotton Malone and Jamie Fraser
in “Past Prologue.”
Exciting new thriller anthology |
Steve and Diana will be appearing at ThrillerFest from July 11 to 15 in New York City. And so will Rogues Jamie Freveletti,
Chris Goff, K.J. Howe, S. Lee Manning, and Gayle Lynds.
Come join us!
In two weeks, on June 16th, the Rogue Limelight shines on another thriller great — Lee Child. Drop by for a fun and insightful read!
I so enjoyed interviewing Steve for our very first Rogue Limelight. He's a great writer, a great man!
"I write what I love." Excellent advice!
As the creator and "guiding light" of our organization, International Thriller Writers, Steve Berry has given so much valuable advice to aspiring writers as well as publishing terrific stories for many years now. I remember getting hooked on his novels when I read THE ROMANOV PROPHESY over a decade ago – and so many others since. Now I can't wait for THE LAST ORDER. So glad he was our guest here and shared so many clever insights.
So glad Steve became a writer and not a doctor–not that he wouldn't have been a great doctor, but he's a fantastic thriller writer. Thank you, Gayle, for having him guest, and thank you, Steve, for Going Rogue!
Nothing has chilled me so profoundly, or lingered longer in my consciousness, than the opening pages of THE AMBER ROOM. If you'd written nothing else the rest of your life, Steve, in my opinion you'd achieved greatness. Thanks for stopping by.
I am such a Steve Berry fan. He's an amazing teacher AND writer! Steve, thanks so much for contributing to our blog, and for all the fantastic lessons from last year's ThrillerFest!