Brad Abdul interview

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

A little introduction:

Hi everyone, my name is Brad Abdul. I am a SFF writer with my debut novel coming in the winter of 2023. I am from Ontario, Canada and currently live there with my wife and our two boys. I am a huge nerd with a love of anime, comic books, video games and movies.

When did your love of books begin?

My love for books actually didn't really begin until my early 20s. I'd read a lot through my childhood and throughout school, but there was rarely ever anything (aside from Harry Potter, maybe) that truly captured my imagination. It wasn't until I was older, with the internet at my fingertips, that I was able to explore a wider variety of stories that I truly enjoyed and fuelled my serious desire to become an author.

When did you start to have the wish to become an author?

I have been writing since I was in grade school. I was always making up stories about one thing or another--mostly with the intent of making them into comic books or graphic novels eventually. After university, however, frustrated with the limits of my own artistic abilities, I decided to turn away from the 'graphic' and more toward the 'novel' side of my creativity. I was about twenty-three when I wrote my then graphic novel into a full-fledged novel. Since then, I've been exclusively a writer.

How have you found the process for becoming an author?

I count myself to be very lucky regarding my journey to authorship. I wrote the very first draft of my debut in about three months. Within the year, I landed my literary agent through #PitMad, and three years after that (after many, many edits), I was lucky enough to find a publisher for the title. All told, the process took a little over four years. While it has felt like a long time for me, I'm humbled knowing that there are many writers out there that would look at my journey as a best case scenario, so I am thankful for all that I have been able to achieve and only wish for the best moving forward into the future.

What would you say to those wanting to become an author?

As simply as I can put it: just do the damn thing. There is nothing stopping you from doing what you want, how you want. All you need to do is set your mind to it and push. Think about it every day, work at it; make it known to your friends and family and don't take the chiding too seriously.

Tell us about your book/books:

My debut novel is a satirical SFF piece called The Devil's Advisor. The story follows a business advisor who is hired by The Devil to get Hell operating smoothly so she can retire comfortably. It is the first in a planned trilogy--I am currently in the process of editing the second installment, so I am very much looking forward to everyone getting a taste of the world I've built and yelling at me for more.

What do you love about the writing/reading community?

The Writing Community is such a wonderful group of people who are equally eccentric as they are introverted. I am so glad that I am part of it as I have met many friends who commiserate over the writing process, celebrate successes, mourn losses, and genuinely just want to see you succeed. It's an incredible group of weirdos and I'm glad to be one of them.

If you could say anything to your readers what would it be?

What else is there to say? I have poured myself into the pages. I have offered up my heart and soul in every word and every character, and I genuinely hope that you all enjoy it. And, of course, thank you to all of you who give the book, and any future pieces, a shot--it means so much to me.

Where can people connect with you?

I'm not a big fan of social media, so I mostly haunt Twitter. I'll eventually have a website and profiles on things like Goodreads and Amazon Authors etc but, for now, the Tweet-Bird is where I'm easiest to be found.