My guest is contemporary fiction author, Benjamin Berkley. Ben has written several legal non-fiction books but this is his fiction debut. He talks a bit about finding inspiration and weaving a story around factual happenings and fiction.
As for any novel, you need inspiration. And that inspiration came many years ago
when a beautiful, white haired older lady came into my office. Her name
was Irene Opdyke and she had a story to tell. But as she spoke, I was
mesmerized by her voice, her hand gestures and her eyes. She spoke so softly and calmly though I
could feel the torture that she endured.
My Rabbi thought that I could assist Irene in negotiating a
contract for her story about how she saved the lives of Jews while working as a
housekeeper for a German commandant. Well, after a lot of legal wrangling, her
book was published and the ABC show, 20/20 eventually did a story on Irene. And
as a result of her story going public, Yard Vashem recognized her as a
Righteous Gentile. Several years ago,
Irene passed away. But her story
survived.
And in 2010, shortly after the release of my last book, and
wanting to transition from writing self-books to a novel, I began thinking
about Irene. Irene would be a character
in my book and it would be her wisdom as one of the themes.
But I didn't want my book to be strictly historical. I needed to make my story modern and
contrast what happened in the concentration camps with a young person today who
was going through her own struggles to survive. And a few morning jogs later, the character of Danielle was born.
I love Danielle. She
is not based on anyone I know but I know her very well. In my book, Danielle is raised by her
grandmother and her Dad as her mother passed away when she was only three. She is bright and opinionated and motivated
to succeed. But she always has to
choose between herself and pleasing her father.
So now I had Irene whose story is told in the first person
by her journal entries that she composed in the hospital where she convalesced
after she was liberated from the Mauthausen Concentration Camp. And Danielle is the young woman; closely
approaching 30 and who has more bridesmaids dresses in her closet than diplomas
on her wall.
But I needed a bridge.
A bridge between the past and the present. And that character was Rose, Danielle’s maternal
grandmother. Rose lived around the
corner from Danielle in a very similar looking apartment building in Jackson
Heights, NY. And when Danielle’s mother
died, Rose was there to help her son in law raise Danielle. As a result, a very special bond developed
between Danielle and her Nana as Nana was always there. And as a young girl, Danielle often turned
to her Nana for comfort when she was scared.
So now you have the three main characters but I needed to
weave a story, which took me about a year to research and write.
Benjamin Berkley
Danielle Landau knows she should feel lucky, but she can't feel anything but dread. Not only did she pass the New York Bar, but she married the man her father says is just right for her and lives in a fashionable new loft in Queens. But the man who seems like the perfect catch is a perfect nightmare at home. Jacob tries to control her career, her daily routine, and even what she eats. He ignores her desires and belittles her every chance he gets. Soon, Danielle doesn't recognize her husband or herself, and she struggles to find a way out.
As we follow Danielle on her journey of terror and recovery, we see her story intersect with the diary entries of a young girl from more than fifty years ago, and the full weight of the family's secrets becomes clear. This is a story of survival, self-discovery, justice, and ultimately about love.
BUY: AMAZON
Growing up in Long Beach, NY,
young Ben Berkley was fascinated by daily black-and-white re-runs of the TV
lawyer show Perry Mason. After getting a B.A. in Speech and Hearing from
Adelphi University in Garden City, NY, Berkley earned his law degree from
Western State University in Fullerton, CA.
Against
My Will
is Ben Berkley’s fifth book and debut novel. He is also the author of four
self-help books: “My Wishes, Your Plan for Organizing Your Family’s Needs”
(Sourcebooks, June, 2006) “The Complete Executor’s Guide” (Sourcebooks, June
2007) “Winning Your Social Security Disability Case” (Sourcebooks, February,
2008) and “Before You Say I Do Again, A Buyer’s Beware Guide to Remarriage.”
(Frederick Fell Publishers, September 2009).
