https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CDND119N/
Looks like a great book! What can you tell us about it?
The Consequence of Stars: A Memoir of Home spawned
from essays I wrote for the literary journal Longshot Island entitled
“The Runaway,” and “Guitar Heroes” published in Under the Gum Tree. I
started considering how the road of life shapes our concept of “home.” What is
home? A place? A state of mind? I began writing about this in its various forms
and in time had collected several linked essays that related—tightly and
loosely—to that idea. We all have our own version of home—the physical place,
and the emotional one. This is about finding that place. One might call it a
soulful travelogue.
In essence, the book is
a mosaic of the experience of searching for one's place in the world, a
kind of travelogue of the heart. I write about a solo and revealing
cross-country train ride, a spiritual awakening in the Navajo Nation, performs
music with Jack Kerouac groupies at the writer's former Florida home, and hunts
for the ghost of Hemingway in the attic of the famous writer's birthplace home.
He revisits his parent's lifelong love affair with their hometown and one
another despite life-threatening odds and sets out to build a Thoreau-like
writer's shed, hoping to discover an artistic space and an artist's home. In
the book's newest essays, he explores how a new life resurrects the spirit, and
how creative longing produces a spiritual awakening.
What has changed in the revised edition?
The first edition was with a previous publisher who
experienced financial issues. I was able to re-establish the publishing rights.
This new edition includes a new introduction and two new essays. “She
Discovered the Sky” and “Leaving Laugharne” were previously published on the
Susbtack newsletter, The Abundance.
What motivated you to write the book?
(See the above first question)
I also wanted to write about my sister who died tragically,
and it took me a long time to find the emotional wherewithal to do that. There
is an essay in this collection about her and that familial connection to home.
How did you come up with the title for the book?
The Consequence of Stars came from what it means to wish on a star. When you do, what are the consequences of those wishes? Your wishes, your dreams are not only just that, a wish, but also have “consequences.” When you wish for a place in the world, do you get it? And if you don’t, what do you do? What are the consequences? It’s about what happens when you get what you wish for, or do not get what you wish for.
What trends do you see in your genre/topic and
where do you think the industry is heading?
There’s so much going on in the industry. It’s, in many ways,
the Wild West. There are great opportunities but at the same time the
gatekeeping at the big publishers has become more stringent. I believe some of
the classics of the 1940s or 1950s may not have been traditionally published
today. They would be too risky for a publishing industry that’s struggling. On
the Road, for instance, would be self-published today. I truly believe
that.
I champion many of the small publishers, but they, too, are
hanging on and in many ways do it out of the love of the written word. They’ll
take more risks, it seems. Most are not doing it to make millions, that’s for
sure.
Self-publishing will continue. And it has improved in scope
and content, although there are still many self-published books that are poorly
written, edited, and designed. It’s getting better, however. But genre is
important. Fantasy, thriller, suspense, etc. seem to do OK for skilled
self-publishers. A book of essays? Not likely to do well. So, self-publishing
or hybrid publishing is great for some authors, not so for others.
How would you describe your writing style? Which
writers or books are you similar too?
I would rather have others describe my style. The
reader/reviewer is the ultimate voice on this.
Some quotes from reviews of “Stars” and other books:
"A writer with an
enormous sense of humanity." —San Francisco Review of Books
"Berner has a
no-holds-barred writing style. Raw, honest, confessional. He's a master
storyteller." -—Geralyn Hesslau Magrady, author of Lines
"Berner tells each story with such stunning and
packed detail that it kept this reader in awe."
—Goodreads Review
The writing style is impeccable." —International Review of Books
Publishers Weekly— "Berner's plainspoken manner reveals
moments of true enlightenment.”
"Lyrical, philosophical, poetic.” —Chicago
Book Review
What challenges did you overcome
in the writing this book?
It was difficult writing about my deceased sister. I might
not call that a “challenge” perse, but it took some time to get me in the right
frame of mind. Also, there was research into family matters that had to be
explored. In all, though, writing this was joyful. It was wonderful to consider
my long journey of searching.
If people can buy or read one book this week or
month, why should it be yours?
I believe memoir and personal narrative work when the story
is relatable, when the reader can put themselves in the writer’s world and find
their own world. I think this book does that. Who doesn’t want to find that
physical or metaphorical “home?” We are all searchers in a way. It’s what we do
as humans. There is strong connective tissue there. I think readers would find
my stories very much like their own, and at the same time take them to places
in the world they may have never been. In many ways, The Consequence of
Stars is a travelogue, a travelogue of the soul and heart.
Where can readers find out more about your work?