Author Interview with Joshua Silverman

A few days ago I reviewed The Emerald Tablet by Joshua Silverman. Today I have an interview with him. 

 1. What inspired to write this particular storyline?

 I remember very clearly the inspiration for the entire seven book series. I was talking to a friend of mine who was interested in Egyptian mythology and she suggested I check out the mythology of Thoth and alchemy. So I did. I picked up a book on alchemy at the bookstore that very day and went home and started reading it. In that book there were three sections (among others). One was on the mythology of the Emerald Tablet, one on the mythology of the Staff of Hermes, and one on the mythology of the Pillar of Hermes. And I don’t know how else to describe it but something clicked in me after I read those sections. I knew there was a story there that was supposed to be told. Within a month I had the entire plot for book one. Within four months I had the basic structure of all seven books. And it’s all based on the mythology of the Egyptian god of magic and wisdom, Thoth.

2. How much research was involved on Ancient Greece and Egyptian Mythology?

Tons. I've always read a lot of history, given that it has been a huge hobby of mine. But I became much more involved when I started writing the series. You have a certain amount of freedom as a writer, but that doesn't mean you can write whatever you want. It has to make sense for not just the story itself, but the world you are creating. I probably ended up reading about 20 books or more for research. I use about 3-5 consistently for reference. Those 5 books are right next to my bed at all times full of notes, highlights, and page markers. 

3. How many books do you have planned for the series?

There will be 7 books in the Leoros story arc. As much as possible, I will be releasing short novellas which will be about 100 pages or so that are part of the expanded universe. They won't involve any of the characters of the Emerald Tablet, but will be about events in Potara's history that shaped the world. The first one, Gardens of Ampheia, will be about Thoth's conquering and subsequent enslavement of the Messenians, making them helots. 

4. What are your favorite book genres?

You can check me out on Goodreads. I read a lot of different genres from spirituality, non-fiction, history, politics, paranormal, to science fiction and fantasy. My favorite is sci-fi/fantasy but I personally believe as an author you should never restrict yourself to reading one genre. It pigeonhole's you in what words you use and how you phrase things.  

Joshua's goodreads profile

5. Favorite Authors?

I love George R.R. Martin, Asimov, Herbert, Goodkind (sometimes), Terry Brooks, Richard Matheson, Shaara, McCullough. 

6. How long did it take you to write the book?

The first draft of The Emerald Tablet was completed in 6 months and was about 200,000 words. For the next year was editing and many many revisions.  

7. What do you like to do in your spare time?

I hike, read, play guitar, spend time with family, and have a crazy bad addiction to Netflix.