Heather’s Bookshelf: Author Interview with Phillip Murrell
Book Title: The Soldiers’ Perspective
Released: 12/18/20
Genre: Dystopian/Military Scifi
Interview by Heather L. Barksdale
What inspired you to write “The Soldiers’ Perspective”?
Murrell: I'm a soldier in the U.S. Army. I've often respected people serving in any military. When I got my MBA, I realized I had more culture shock from American civilians than the foreign students. It made me wonder if soldiers, who didn't know each other in any way, on opposite sides of a war could have been friends under different circumstances. That led me to not wanting to label either of my main characters as the protagonist or antagonist. Their perspectives are similar. Both are patriotic and wrestling fans, but they will see the conflict through the lens of their cause being just
How did you come up with the names of your main characters?
Murrell: T'az was named after my youngest brother's dog. He helped me write the (unproduced) screenplay, which I adapted this into. Sare's name came from a more random event. In one of my MBA classes we were taught about common mistakes in slides for presentation. One was the image blowing up too large and cutting off important information. The example used was of a football field with the words "fans are important" in the upper left corner. The blowout cut out some letters, leaving "s are importa". I moved the s over to form Sare and kept Importa as his last name.
Is there anything that you want readers to know about you, your writing process or your book?
Murrell: I just hope they enjoy my books and read to the end. I often have startling revelations that seem to flip between infuriating readers by subverting their expectations or allowing them to sigh in applause because it took a different path than much of the mainstream does.
If "The Soldiers’ Perspective" were adapted into a movie, who would you like to see cast to play your lead characters?
Murrell: I always think about actors or other celebrities for body types. That being said, I usually pick people who may now be too old because my inspiration came from an earlier role. For The Soldiers' Perspective, I thought of Morris Chestnut (circa Boyz n the Hood) and T'az was Michael Biehn (his Aliens version).
When you encounter writer’s block, what do you do to break yourself out of it?
Murrell: I usually don't suffer from this problem. Before I begin writing, I create a treatment for every chapter. Later revisions will fill things out, but I always have my next prompt if I feel I've already said everything from the first. I do have a little issue working on the treatment, but I just step back for a few hours and do something else. There's always inspiration in the real world.
Are there any tips that you would like to share with other aspiring authors?
Murrell: Write for yourself and develop a thick skin. I have very few friends and family who read my books. It was hurtful at first, but I've moved past it. Even if everyone you know helps you, a famous person can always draw away readers because people want to discuss books. Unknown indie authors like me don't have enough fans for mass discussion, so the next book by a known hit can leech away people who would give the book a chance if they had the time (and knew the book existed) to do so.
What is your favorite book, genre, and/or author?
Murrell: I like space fantasy the best. Regular fantasy is great, but it tends to get people stuck in medieval Europe as a base. With space fantasy, I can still have magic, but I also don't have to care about racial/sexual/etc prejudices, unless I want to.
What are you working on next?
Murrell: Today, I literally wrote the last chapter in the rough draft of my eighth novel. It is a YA book similar to The Hunger Games.
Learn More About the Author and The Soldiers’ Perspective here:
Show Me All The Superheroes | Phillip Murrell
Phillip Murrell (Author of Bystanders) | Goodreads
Facebook: @bystanderssaga
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