Thursday 5 December 2019

SPACE TIME MAGAZINE INTERVIEWS BRENDA MOHAMMED



SPACE TIME MAGAZINE
Subject: Interview | Name: BRENDA MOHAMMED
GALAXY: Milky Way, PLANET: Earth, SPECIES: Humanoid.
OCCUPATION: Author, GENRE: Sci-Fi…
IDENTIFICATION OF HUMANOID: Brenda Mohammed


INTRODUCTION
Brenda Mohammed a multi-genre, award-winning author and poet, is the author of twenty-one books. She lives in Trinidad in the Caribbean.
Brenda is a former Bank Manager of a leading International Bank in Trinidad and Tobago and a former Insurance Professional. She holds a Banking Diploma from The Institute of Bankers, London and a Life Underwriting diploma from American College, USA. She is a Lifetime Member of the Million Dollar Round Table – The Premier Association for Financial Professionals.
Since she started writing she has won several awards. In November 2018 she traveled to Miami to collect two prestigious awards from Readers Favorite International for two of her books. One award was for Zeeka Chronicles: Revenge of Zeeka, a Science Fiction, and the other for I am Cancer Free, A Memoir.
Her work has been recognized by World Nations Writers’ Union, and she was made a member as well as an Honorary member of its World Higher Literary Academic Council.
She also received a World Laureate in Literature Award for her lifetime achievements in Literature, and a Certificate of Honour for serving as a juror in an International Poetry Contest from World Nations Writers Union in December 2018.
At the same time, she was presented with a Global Literature Guardian Award from the Founder of Motivational Strips and its Associates, World Nations Writers’ Union, and Union Hispanomundial de Escritores
On 4th March 2019, Motivational Strips and the Nominating Authorities recognized Brenda for her efforts in maintaining and spreading Global Peace and awarded her with a Global Peace Award [Gold].
June 2019 appointed National President of the Union of Writers, Union Hispaniomundial de Escritos for Trinidad and Tobago.
In August 2019 received a Diploma and World Poetic Star Award from World Nations Writers Union. Writers, Union Hispaniomundial de Escritos for Trinidad and Tobago
On 31st August 2019 was honored by the Seychelles Government Accredited Literary Society [ LLSF] for her contribution to World Poetry, creativity, and writing expertise.
On October 16th 2019 she was awarded the Order of Shakespeare Medal by the Founder of the Facebook group Shiju H Pallithazheth for selfless service imparted to keep the ambiance of world writers on a rightful and progressive path, as well as in helping the forum in maintaining the modus operandi of Motivational Strips secure since its inception stage a year ago.

QUESTIONS
ALEXA WAYNE (AW): When did you find out you would want to write novels?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: It was never my intention to become a writer.
I wrote I am Cancer Free to tell persons in a similar position that cancer is a battle you have to fight and win. The response I received from buyers and readers gave me encouragement to write more books.
I am Cancer Free was the winner of Mc Grath House Indie Book Awards in the category Non-Fiction in September 2016 and won an award from Readers Favorite International Book Awards 2018 in the category Health and Fitness.

AW: You mentioned your work, all set in science-fiction or cyborg settings, would you let our readers know why you are attracted to that genre?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: I am a multi-genre writer but suddenly got an idea for a science fiction series when I read about the zika virus.
It was set in the year 2036 and based on events that took place 20 years before.
After writing the first three books, Zeeka and the Zombies, Zeeka’s Child, and Zeeka Returns, I combined them into one book named Revenge of Zeeka: Horror Trilogy.

Revenge of Zeeka: Horror Trilogy received a five-star review from Readers Favorite.
I thought I was done with the series, but Zeeka haunted me in my dreams.
I had the same dream for almost a month.
He insisted that I write the fourth book, Zeeka’s Ghost because he said that I did not tell the full story.
“What do you mean by the full story?” I asked him.
He replied, “Start writing and I will tell you what to write.”
I said, “But you are dead. You committed suicide. How can you tell me what to write?”
“Do you believe in ghosts?” he asked.
I wrote Zeeka’s Ghost, the fourth book, which was unplanned, and believe it or not, Zeeka told me what to write.

I was still not finished with the series.
He returned in my dreams and told me to write the fifth book, Resurrection to reveal the true identity of Zombie Number Nine.
I was guided by him to do that book as well.

You must think that I am crazy, but I believe all writers experience something similar.
I combined all five stories into one book named Zeeka Chronicles: Revenge of Zeeka.
The book won an award in Readers Favorite International Awards 2018.
These are some of the headlines of reviews on Amazon.
1. I found the book to be original, brilliant, and full of suspense.
2. Just when you thought you knew everything about Zombies, comes this imaginative tale that re-defines their existence.
3. I loved this book. It will make a great movie. I recommend it if you love sci-fi novels.
4.Great Science Fiction reading.
5.Twilight Zone-like Sci-Fi Shorts.
6.Excellent, original story.
7. Blind-siding events Abound.
8. A fascinating vision of our future.
9. An above-average zombie series brought together in one superb collection.
10. Teens and up will adore this book.
11. I loved Zeeka Chronicles; it has worldwide appeal for anyone looking for an entertaining story that is different.
12. Mohammed did a great job taking current/recent events and imagining how they might affect our future.
13. A gory, romantic and thrilling take on the zombie genre, all in one collection.
14. Off-The-Wall But Engaging Sci-Fi/Horror.
AW: When writing about sci-fi, do you do research and if so, how far do you go with your research?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: Yes. When I wrote the Zeeka stories I researched for high-tech weapons, robots, programmable zombies, and other technology in the year 2036 but found nothing. My eight-year-old grandson came up with names for weapons and technological equipment and I am very proud of him. Reviewers commented positively on the shrinkenator, zombies, robots, and weapons.

AW: What is most important to you when writing your novels?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: I write with the readers in mind. I want my readers to experience every emotion expressed by my characters such as love, joy, rage, terror, disappointment, and sorrow.

AW: Which authors influenced your writing in science-fiction?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: I cannot name a science fiction author because I never read any science fiction books that interested me. I can name movies that enthralled me like Star Wars, Star Trek, Back to the Future, T-Rex, Ex Machina and many more.

AW: Which of your novels is your favorite and why is it your favorite?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: Zeeka Chronicles: Revenge of Zeeka is definitely my favourite novel. It was my first try at science fiction and it was a great success. It received a five-star review from Readers Favorite soon after I published it, and won several awards as follows:

1. Award winner in the Category Young Adult Thriller in Readers Favorite International Awards 2018.



2. Winner of the gold award in the category science fiction in Emagazine Readers' Choice Awards 2018.


3. Top ten finalist in the Author Academy Global Awards 2018.

4.Winner in Science Fiction in SIBA Awards 2017.

AW: Do you believe in alien visiting our world, by that I mean in abduction or close encounters of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th kind?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: No. I do not believe in aliens although I may write about them. I regard them as fiction.

AW: What made you decide to be self-published?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: I chose self-publishing as I wanted the freedom to revise my books or covers whenever I want without having to wait on a publisher to do so.

AW: What sets you apart from other science-fiction and cyborg authors?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: I don’t consider myself a famous science fiction writer. However, the book, Zeeka Chronicles: Revenge of Zeeka did win awards from Readers Favorite and other entities. Reviewers have emphasized its originality, so it is worth reading.

AW: What can readers look forward to from Brenda Mohammed in 2019?

BRENDA MOHAMMED:
In January 2019 I released my first book of Poetry, Strength for the Disheartened: Motivational Poems.
I had founded a Facebook group called How to Write for Success in February 2017.
In October 2018 I affiliated it to another Facebook Group called Motivational Strips.
Both groups have the same mission of Writers’ Empowerment.
Because of that association, I have developed a passion for poetry.
On February 2nd, 2019 both groups produced A Spark of Hope: An Anthology of Poems for Saving Lives.
The book topped the charts on Amazon and made New Release No.1 within the space of two days.
In February 2019, I released a Crime fiction, The Axe Murderer: Barry Holmes Investigates.
in August 2019 I released my second book of poetry - Dreams of the Heart: A Poetry Collection.
After I returned from a trip abroad I wrote STORIES THAT INTRIGUE, a romance novel, and released it in October 2019.
Whether or not I will write another science fiction book only time will tell.

AW: Is there any website or social media where people can reach or follow you?

BRENDA MOHAMMED: I have several Facebook Pages for the different genres as well as a website.

Website

Twitter
BlogSpot
LinkedIn
GoodReads
Amazon Universal Link

This concludes our interview.
Thank you so very much for your time.
We thank you for your time and answers.
We are honored to have you on our website and we hope you had a wonderful time answering our questions.

Kind regards,
Space-Time Magazine


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