Author: Sabri Bebawi
Title: God on Trial
Publisher: Create Space
ISBN: 978-1491212035
Pages: 280, Paperback/Kindle
Genre: Mystery
Author Interview with Sabri Bebawi
Interview Questions for Sabri Bebawi
Interviewed by: Lisa Brown-Gilbert, Pacific Book Review
1. PBR: What initially sparked your interest as a writer?
Since I was a young child, I have been writing my thoughts and reflections in diaries and journals. As an adult, I worked as a journalist for a press agency associated with Agence France Presse. Although I practiced law and taught English, Journalism, and Instructional Technology in colleges and universities for many years, I have always considered myself a writer. I have written many articles, essays and books that were published, but nothing was real major. I have always had a dream to write a decent novel.
2. PBR: What books have inspired you as a writer?
Through the years of my education, I have read many books, literature and otherwise. When I was young, Agatha Christie’s works fascinated me, and I have read all her works. I have always wanted to write something similar – a mystery. However, I am sure Gibran Khalil Gibran, William Faulkner, Virginia Woolf, and Arthur Miller influenced me a great deal.
3. PBR: Who is your favorite author?
I cannot really say I have a favorite author since I enjoy reading; however, the novel that – as I recall- had the most effect on me was, and I do not know why, ‘The Sound and the Fury’ by William Faulkner. Having been born in Egypt, I grew to love Naguib Mahfouz for he had known Egypt so well and described it precisely as I saw it. I think he and my intellectual father taught me courage
4. PBR: What advice do you have for new writers?
I write for the sake of writing; I do not think of whether the book will or will not succeed. I write as a form of therapy and enjoyment. New writers should do and truly feel the same. One has a certain message one wants to express and share. That is all there is to it.
My experience with my first novel “God on Trial” was an educational one. It seems that the novel took a life of its own. I planned it in a specific way and it turned out, surprisingly, completely different. Writing is certainly a very active and dynamic process.
5. PBR: How did you choose the subject matter for the novel?
Since my childhood and growing up in a religiously fanatic society, I have always questioned religions and the idea of God. I have always wanted to make people think that their blind following of such evil verses was a form of insanity. I have always wanted to bring the entity of God to justice. My original plan, having studied and practiced law, was to write an actual court trial of God. As I started writing, the book took a life of its own and turned the way it did. My main idea and purpose was to show that God has written illegal hate writings, which would legally be prohibited for any human. As humans would be punished for such sadistic nature, I think God should, too.
6. PBR: Is there a message in the novel that you are trying to portray to readers?
Absolutely! The message is that one should not follow faith blindly; one should red, understand, analyze and think before believing. There is nothing that God has written that has a moral fiber. My question is, why do people continue to kill on his behalf? And if he were so powerful and mighty as he made himself to be, why does he need people to do his dirty work.
The message simply is enough is enough. Someone had to have the courage to tell the truth.
7. PBR: Is any of the novel’s content based on personal experiences?
Yes, the principles are of personal experience growing up in a society that is plagued by religious hallucination. I was awestricken when I found that my new country, the United States, is just as mad. Yes, it is all derived from personal experience.
8. PBR: What were the challenges of bringing this book to life?
Writing requires patience, research, discipline, determination and hard work. Despite my medical challenges, I was determined to get this message out. I spent nights researching, writing, editing, reviewing, and editing again. It has been a sweet challenge of sort. Once I saw a product before me, all the hard work and challenges meant nothing.
9. PBR: Do you expect to explore the subject matter in this book in any future works?
I am not sure. I think I have achieved my task. I am looking forward to be able to write mysteries at the level of the French, Italian and Swedish. Certainly this subject matter will appear in some writings since it really controls our lives.
10. PBR: Are you currently working on any projects?
I am hoping to start working on a mystery European style that would bring several international aspects, cultures, and languages to it. I am now merely plotting.
