Interview With Author Oren Shved
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been a creative director and game designer for many years. Went through a long list of startups in the gaming, VR, and AR worlds (some were mine, some weren’t).
I had the privilege of writing a lot for games and a lot of other creative projects, but this was my first time writing a novel.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Let the Earth open” was inspired by a south-Korean show that I saw, which reunited people with a VR version of their departed loved ones. And since I’ve always worked with cutting-edge interactive technologies, I wondered what it would look like If an AI gathered all of our data and created these kinds of scenes for us. Where would that lead us? Where would it lead the AI? That was when I decided to incorporate AI into my writing so that whenever the AI character in the book spoke, it was a real natural language algorithm writing its lines, thus creating a dialogue between myself and the machine.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not really. I like to get up early and start writing as soon as my wife goes to work, and my kid goes to school. I find that momentum and a quiet, tidy space help my concentration.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
A lot of them, recently, I think that Andy Weir really helped me feel comfortable whenever I spice up my writing with interesting trivia and scientific facts that I know would excite my geeky/nerdy readers.
What are you working on now?
Since “Let the Earth open” is a trilogy, I am currently working on book No. 2
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I think the thing that helped me most was getting hundreds of people to join my mailing list by finding relevant social media groups that deal with the future of tech and updating them during development.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Be stronger than your biggest excuse and more stubborn than your biggest obstacle (and have it printed, so you see this quote daily).
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Always make sure to get some distance and perspective from what you’re writing. Let it sit for a while, then get back to it and read it aloud from a printed paper. It’ll give you a more objective take on things.
What are you reading now?
Just started “The Postman,” by David Brin.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Growing my audience as much as I can while writing book No. 2 and outlining the plot progression for the entire trilogy.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
1. The hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy. Read it a million times and could read it a million more times. Very practical on a desert island.
2. The lord of the rings trilogy. Takes me back to my childhood as no other book does.
3. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, by Jonathan Safran Foer. A book that moved me like no other.
Author Websites and Profiles
Oren Shved’s Social Media Links