Author Interview ~ Hanna Abi Akl

I’d like to welcome Author Hanna Abi Akl to my site.

Let’s start by finding out a little bit about you!

What is your name and do you write under a pen name? My name is Hanna Abi Akl. I stick to my original name when writing and don’t use a pen name.

Where do you call home? Paris, France.

Do you have any hobbies, other than writing? What do you enjoy doing? Reading, listening to music, and playing my guitar.

What is your greatest dream? To live in a small remote house by the beach and write quietly and peacefully.

What is the most terrible thing that ever happened to you? Losing my father when I was 13.

What or who inspired you to start writing? And how long have you been writing? I was inspired by some great writers I had the chance of reading, most notably Charles Bukowski and John Fante. I felt they were talking to me through their books so many years after they were published and that’s what got me into writing. I’ve been writing seriously since college and published my first novel at 23.

What is your greatest fear? Failure.

Do you prefer e-books, paperbacks, hard-covers or audio-books? Paperback or hard-covers. Anything in print.

Have you ever read a book more than once? And if so what was it? Factotum by Charles Bukowski.

What is your opinion of novellas? I’m all for them.

Have you ever read a book just based on its cover? “God is Dead” by Ron Currie Jr.

What is your favorite film based on a book? The Shawshank Redemption based on the work by Stephen King. Close seconds are Ask The Dust and Factotum.

What is your favorite book genre at the moment? Literary fiction. I especially enjoy dirty realism.

What book are you reading at the moment? And in what format? “Slouching Toward Nirvana” by Charles Bukowski in paperback.

If you could invite any four (4) celebrities (alive or dead) to your dinner party, who would you invite and why? Charles Bukowski, John Fante, Charles Baudelaire and Ernest Hemingway. I think they each have their distorted view of reality they’d like to make us part of. Plus, they’re all good drinkers!

Let’s shift somewhat and talk about your latest story.

What is the name of your most recent book and if you had to sum it up in 20 or fewer words, what would you say? The book is titled “It’s a Big Big World”. The work is a novel. It’s the story of an up-and-coming writer trying to get published while having moved to another country. It deals with the themes of immigration, institutionalization, society, and love.

Is the above book part of a series? No.

How did you come up with the cover? Who designed the cover of your book(s)? The cover was made to be simple and vague, just like the book title. It is based off a circle, which could easily be interpreted as a globe or the world. It was designed by a small subsidiary team of my publisher.

ORDER IT HERE

Did you listen to any particular songs while writing your book(s)? Classical music, mostly Chopin, Mozart, Beethoven.

How did you come up with the title for your book(s)? I was aiming for something simple and that could reflect a feeling of overwhelming vastness at the same time.

In your latest novel, who is the lead character and can you tell us a little about him/her? The protagonist is John Kaliba. He is a stubborn, opinionated, semi-alcoholic up-and-coming writer who has just published his first book.

What is your character’s greatest strengths? His passion for writing and his love for Diane.

And what are his/her greatest weaknesses? Stubbornness, alcohol problems, detachment, pride.

What’s a positive quality that your character is unaware that he or she has? His indomitable will to be different and stay true to himself. Not follow the herd.

Let’s talk now about your writing process.

What is your writing style like? Are you a pantster or a plotter? I write in a concise, economical, lyrical style. My writing is a stream-of-consciousness so I prefer to sit down and write instead of outlining.

What’s the best advice that you have been given when it comes to writing? The final judge of writing is the writer himself.

Where can your readers follow you?