In our latest interview, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Steven Joseph, the creative mind behind the engaging and unique Cranky Superpowers. Joseph, known for his distinctive approach to self-help and humor, shares insights into his latest book, which challenges readers to transform their crankiness into a source of personal strength. From the inspiration behind his writing to his thoughts on character adaptations and future projects, here’s what Steven Joseph had to say about his journey as an author and the intriguing concept of embracing our inner crankiness. Make sure to grab your copy now.
Q. What is the core message you want to deliver to the world through your writing/books/stories in your self-help series?
A. I think that the principal message is to embrace our crankiness and look closely at it to see how it can be used to foster our own unique powers.
Q. What makes your book unique?
A. This book is different than any other book you will read. That is not what I say. It is what my readers tell me. Every chapter is different than the other. Every chapter will make you laugh out loud. Every chapter will make you reflect and think about your own life. The stories and lessons stay with you long after you finish reading.
Q. Who/What is your biggest inspiration in your writing?
A. I think it is the odd things that happen in daily life and in my work as a lawyer. An attorney comes into mediation and exclaims it is not his first rodeo, I end up with First Rodeo CrankaTsuris as a chapter. People will always say things that give me a hook into a story, and I go from there.
Q. When did you decide to write the Cranky series and why?
A. My first book was a Children’s book The Last Surviving Dinosaur: The TyrantoCrankaTsuris. It was a story about the smallest but crankiest dinosaur on the planet, and how all humans evolved from that little dinosaur. One reviewer commented that the book did not talk about how to overcome crankiness, and I thought the point was to embrace our crankiness. I started a blog on how to embrace our crankiness, and everything took off from there.
Q. What has been your favorite comment/review so far about your book?
A. “Is it genius or madness? I can’t decide!”
Q. Which fictional character would be most exciting to meet in real life?
A. Hagrid from Harry Potter. He reminds me a bit of my amazing illustrator, Andy Case.
Q. If your book were turned into a film/TV show, who would you tap to play the lead(s)? Why? – Ben Stiller. He plays a lot of characters that fall in line with the characters in my book. He starts out sometimes as a bit of a loser, and somehow, he finds the inner strength that he did not know he had. It is his cranky superpower!
Q What is something you learned while writing the Cranky Superpowers book?
A. I learned how to look at my own crankiness in a positive way, and how I just barely tapped into crankiness with two books.
Q. Give us the scoop about your next upcoming book in the Snoodles series.
A. I am so excited about this next book “Snoodles in Space, Episode 2: The Zoodles Strike Back”. The idea for the book was a lightning bolt coming out of the sky. It turns the Willie Wonka upside down. The spoiled kids end up being the heroes in the story saving everyone on the planet from becoming Willy Nillys and Dilly Dallys. We are already working on the follow up book “Snoodles in Space: Escape from Zoodletraz!” That promises to be a DooWopadoodle Tale from Outer Space!
Part 2 – Rapid Fire Questions
- Running or Hiking? RUNNING
- What is your favorite shower song? SOME JEWISH PRAYER. I USED TO BE A CANTOR.
- Red Meat or White Meat? RED MEAT
- Broccoli or Brussel Sprouts? BRUSSEL SPROUTS
- Tomatoes or Potatoes? POTATOES
- Baked or Fried? FRIED
- Wine or Beer? WINE
- Sky diving or Scuba diving? SKY DIVING
- Fame or Fortune? FORTUNE
- Invisibility cloak or sparkling skin? INVISIBILITY CLOAK
For more author interviews, check out The Amber Menhir here.
