GIVEAWAY & 5 QUESTIONS WITH AN AUTHOR | CHRIS KESKINIS

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE UNDER-APPRECIATED BOOK?

My favorite book was, is and will always be ‘The Lord of the Rings’.  Even before the movies and the general acceptance they caused, I had always considered that such a masterpiece should have been read by EVERYONE. But since it’s underestimated books we are talking about, I could speak for no other but ‘Almouric’   by Robert E. Howard! Everyone knows the author of Conan, but very few really know the other muscular hero he created.  I adore Conan but when I read ‘Almouric’, my favorite barbarian lost his place in the throne of my heart.

DO YOU HIDE PERSONAL ELEMENTS IN YOUR BOOKS? PERHAPS HINTS OR INSIDE JOKES THAT ONLY A FEW PEOPLE WILL GET?

Always! Every story of mine, no matter how small or big it may be, hides such elements. Some of them are very personal, and people can hardly match them with me; except of course of some people very close to me.  Some other elements, when read by my friends, will cause smiles by them since they will bring in mind their past words or deeds. Therefore you had better be careful of what you say or do in front of a writer. He will use it for sure.

In ‘Beer o’ Quest’ for instance, my second book, I created each character in the story having in my mind a particular friend of mine. And of course various events in the book have taken place for real (for example killing a dragon!).

I really love using real people’s elements when creating the characters of my stories; whether they are my elements or of people I know.  I believe that this way my characters become more realistic.

HOW DO YOU COPE WITH WRITER’S BLOCK?

To be honest, I have never had to cope with that sort of problem so far. Sometimes I may write stuff that in the end  I don’t really like. Or it might be some new story quite different from the one I had in mind to begin with. But the point is that I do write something. On the other hand, when I can’t write anything I just read! Things are always getting much better when you read a book you love.

WHO HAS BEEN THE MOST SUPPORTIVE PERSON IN YOUR LIFE WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR WRITING?

It’s my lover. She is the first one to read each one of my stories.  She points out my mistakes and even suggests different plots to me. I’m one lucky guy. My family has also stood by me. They have never objected to my writing efforts. Unfortunately it’s not that easy to make a living as a writer in our country (Greece) and there are a lot of people who don’t understand the ‘useless hobby’. Thank God my family doesn’t belong to this sort of people.

IF YOU COULD CHOOSE A PLACE TO LIVE FOR A WHOLE YEAR WHILE WRITING A BOOK THAT TAKES PLACE IN THAT SAME SETTING WHERE WOULD THAT BE?

Since I was a kid, I had always appreciated the quietness of boondocks; even though I had never liked loneliness. For instance, I consider a lighthouse, a low populated island to be the ideal place to live in with my lover. There I could be writing night and day. I had once read a horror story that was about a man living in a lighthouse in such an island who was getting mad. I guess I have been thinking about it since then. I hope some time the dream will become true.

Chris was born, studied and works in Thessaloniki, about 11 centuries after the era he belongs to. From a very early age, he wrote short stories as well as song lyrics for his own pleasure, and shared them with friends and family. He likes to dig into myths and traditions and use them in his stories.
Once, he read in a Stephen King interview that we all have a story to tell and it’s just that some people fail to do it, so he decided to write his own. His first book was released in 2016 under the title “Bifrost-The Path of Warriors”. He has contributed to anthologies such as “The Legends of the Universe No V”, “The Fall of the Gods”, “Awakening”, “The Epic of Imagination” and “Zythologotechnia”. He also publishes stories and articles on various websites. He has been an active member of the Heavy Metal and Literature Club of the Fantastic Excalibur Thessaloniki since 2008. When he does not write, he takes his sword and chases imaginary enemies in the mountains.

Wanna pick his mind?

You can usually find him at the heavy metal club EXCALIBUR during the weekends,

buy BEER-O Quest here and take a look at his Facebook profile

THE CHELFDOM IN COLLABORATION WITH CHRIS KESKINIS IS GIVING AWAY A SIGNED COPY OF BEER-O QUEST TO ONE LUCKY CHELFLING! TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT DOWN BELOW WITH YOUR EMAIL SO THAT WE CAN CONTACT YOU, MENTIONING THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ENTERED. THE CONTEST IS OPEN INTERNATIONALLY BUT PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT THE BOOK IS IN GREEK.WE HAVE ANOTHER SURPRISE FOR MY NON-ENGLISH-SPEAKING-CHELFLINGS SO EVEN IF YOU DON’T SPEAK GREEK DO NOT HESITATE TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY.THE WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED HERE ON THURSDAY JULY 19TH. GOOD LUCK!

DORAGON CAFE

www.chelf.net see ya on the Chelfdom <3