Introduction:

Last week I began  a new “mini-post” series titled “Here’s SpecFicNZ-Christchurch.”  As explained, effectively my fellow authors will be introducing themselves using a series of  common headings:

Here’s Who: a short, first person introduction to the writer
Here’s Why: the writer writes speculative fiction
Here’s What: an example of the writer’s work
Here’s Where: you can find out more about the writer and their work—and I really hope you will!

And now I am very pleased to introduce this week’s guest, Kevin Berry.

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Here’s SpecFicNZ–Christchurch: Featuring Kevin Berry

Here’s Who:
My name’s Kevin Berry and I’ve been writing off and on approximately forever. I’m middle-aged in a chronological sense, but young at heart. I work part-time as a software engineer, but my aim is to write and edit fiction full-time. I’ve got a degree which I’ve never used and two diplomas, one in Hypnotherapy and the other in a subject I don’t mention to anyone, as it was so long ago. I read widely, particularly specfic and YA, but also contemporary and some non-fiction. My favourite author is Connie Willis, but I mostly read indie authors nowadays. My other interests include editing, hanging out with other writers, walking, playing backgammon, dancing Ceroc and spending time with my two boys.

I’ve co-authored three humorous fantasy books with Diane Berry: “Dragons Away!” (on the strength of which we won the Sir Julius Vogel Award 2012 for Best New Talent), “Growing Disenchantments” and “Fountain of Forever” (coming out this year), and have written one romance comedy novel of my own, “Stim”, set in Christchurch, featuring students with Asperger’s Syndrome.

Here’s Why:
I like to joke that I don’t have the imagination for real life, so instead I write fantasy, but I actually enjoying writing specfic because that’s what I like to read. And it must be humorous because ordinary life is far too serious an affair, and people need to escape from it for a while with a great book; at least, I do anyway. I like character-driven speculative fiction the best. There must be plot, of course, but it’s the likeable characters that you tend to remember, and that’s why I try to create life-like, believable characters with real flaws that the reader can relate to, even if they’re not human, or they’re only partly human, and they deal with magic and fantastic devices. Even the most powerful sorcerer may have trouble keeping up with the housework.

Here’s What:
This is the blurb for the second humorous fantasy novel, “Growing Disenchantments”, that I co-wrote with Diane Berry, released last year.

“Just when he’d been looking forward to another quiet night delving into mind-bending arcane lore and mentally wrestling with the deepest magicks, along came this mysterious thief to disturb him. Why was it nothing in Ragonnard’s life ever went to plan?

Rather than turn her in to the law (or into something else), the young sorcerer offers Ganfrey a deal – steal a portrait from the palace for him. But it’s no ordinary portrait. For 500 years it’s been a magical prison for Syranax, the most powerful sorcerer in history. His enchanted Amulet was entombed with him, and Ragonnard wants it. More than anything.

In releasing the Amulet, Ragonnard unleashes a devastating sequence of sorcerous events, the like of which has not been seen for hundreds of years. And, no, things definitely don’t go to plan.

Ned Merrivel is a time traveller from the future. His job is to sort it out when it all goes wrong and save the world somehow. If only he can find a pair of trousers first.”

Here’s Where:

To find out more about my writing, see www.kdberry.com

My co-authored novels are available at most online retailers. Here are two links:

Dragons Away! at Amazon (US)

Growing Disenchantments at Amazon (US)

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The “Here’s SpecFicNZ–Christchurch” series will be posting every Wednesday for the next six weeks.