Steve Berry, Thriller Novelist

By Author: Donny Jenkins
Total Articles: 200
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Next to death and taxes, humans loathe doubt most. Yet, toying with doubt makes for a exciting time. The excitement of a roller coaster is in the doubt you’ll survive to ride again; in a story, it’s will the hero triumph.

Secrets told by teenage girls reduce doubt as do urban legends told by teenage boys. Among adults, rumour and gossip reduce doubt. In the end, everyone feels secure and safe.

Novels that thrill, such as "The Columbus Affair,” create much doubt for the reader. What if showing a 500-year-old secret as true meant violently re-shaping the world, today. How might such a story take place or end well?

Authors of thrillers, such as Steve Berry, build plots spiked with crushing doubt. About to take his own life, Tom Sagan, a disgraced reporter, agrees to rescue his daughter, who hates him. A harsh game of cat-and-mouse, against a callous villain, plays out, internationally.

For thirty years , Berry was a lawyer in St Mary’s, Georgia. In 1990, he began writing carefully researched historical, not legal, thrillers. "Write what you love,” says Berry, ...
... "not necessarily what you know: I love history.”

Persistence is his strength. "After 85 letters of rejection,” says Berry, "Little Random House published ‘The Amber Room,’ in 2003.” Now, he has four stand-alone novels, eight episodes in the Cotton Malone series and four e-books published.
"For each novel,” says Berry, "I research about 400 books.” His job is to find facts to mix in a fictional plot, seasoned with much action and sound guesswork. Was Columbus Jewish and did his 1492 journey have latent purpose: "I think so,” says Berry.

His latest novel, "The King’s Deception,” asks questions about Queen Elizabeth I. "It’s a tense game of hide-and-seek, set in the landmarks of London, that won’t disappoint readers,” says Berry. "This is the eighth episode in the Cotton Malone series.”

"I picked up the idea for the book while in England, in 2010.” A tour guide told him of a tale, dating to 1542. "I hadn’t heard of the event,” says Berry. "It was too good to resist.”

In each of his books, Berry challenges the reader to guess what comes next. Why does the anti-hero unexpectedly save the villain from quicksand? The comprehensive cleverness, of Berry, makes his novels a chess match, with the reader trying vainly to predict the next move, only to say, "Of course.”

Berry uses his success well. He and his wife, Elizabeth, developed a writing workshop, given as part of events backed by his charity, History Matters. " Saving historical documents found in the home is our focus,” says Berry.
"There are millions of documents,” he says, "sitting in basements or attics, the ink fading. The Declaration of Independence has faded so much it's almost impossible to read.”

In this interview, Steve Berry discusses writing. Specifically, how he develops doubt and applies a salve. How he decides on book topics. How an agent, publisher and editor fulfill his needs as a writer. Click to read the full interview, now.

Steve Berry, left, authors thrillers. His novels blend history, secrets and conspiracy with taut action and exotic locations. ‘The King’s Deception,’ his latest book, asks about Queen Elizabeth I, as its recurring character, Cotton Malone, rolls from one life threatening circumstance to another. In this exclusive interview, Berry discusses writing: how he develops doubt and applies a salve, how he decides on book topics and how an agent, publisher and editor fulfill the needs of a writer. Click to read more.

the kings deception