Featured Interview With Peter A. Schoemann
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
My name is Peter Schoemann. Since moving to Florida at 13 years old, I’ve spent most of the last 35 years living in Florida (except for the two years we lived in Washington D.C.). I’m married to the love of my life-my wife, Christine Eckstein. Together, we’re raising four wonderful children-Kate’, David, Kenny, and Ava. Like any family, we’ve had our challenges. Our boys were diagnosed as autistic at a young age and they and Ava have the same kidney disease that forced my wife, two of her siblings, and their father to get kidney transplants.
We do not view the autism or kidney disease as a negative (although Kenny now experiencing kidney failure presents a new obstacle to overcome). Instead, these challenges have inspired us to help people with disabilities and show what they can do.
In 2011, our family formed Breaking Barriers Martial Arts-a taekwondo school for people with special needs. Since then, eight of our students have earned black belts. While we’re proud of their lofty achievements, it’s been far more rewarding to witness the growth in each of the dozens of students–not only in terms of their physical development, but in terms of their social, intellectual, and leadership development.
Our children continue to amaze us. David is a rising sophomore at the University of North Florida. He is studying to become a writer. Together, he and I wrote the short story Project RM: The Code. In late June or July, we will launch this sequel to Project RM: Genesis. David and Ava are helping with the writing and many other aspects of Project RM. Kenny is a high school junior who loves digital animation. He’s working on his first cartoons, which are very funny (yes, I’m biased). Our oldest, Katarina, is a rising senior at the University of Florida. She’s the odd one, studying pre-med.
With three of my children interested in telling stories through books and animation, Project RM has become the launching pad for Eck-Schoe Productions and Publications, LLC. My dream is for Eck-Schoe to be there for them long after I retire.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I realized I love books in my thirties, when I picked up Harry Potter and the Sorceer’s Stone and could’t put it down. Before that, reading and writing felt like a necessity-I’m a corporate and tax lawyer. My fascination with writing began in February 2010. During lunch one day, I sat at my desk reading a sports or some other news article. Suddenly, a thought popped into my head. What if an extinction level event were to occur? This is not my regular thought process, but a story began to form. What if in the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis the government had created a secret society of Renaissance men and women who could maintain civilization if such an event could not be prevented? Without them, any survivors likely would lose many advances we consider essential-power, medicine, food and water distribution, security, etc. They’d be thrown back into the dark ages. A story about the son of two of these RMs flowed through my head. I knew immediately this was a story that had to be written. I’ve taken the last eight years to transform my legal writing into novel writing. I’ve learned from editors, a writing group, and others. Through the ups and downs, I’ve never wavered. This story has to be told.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
As I mention above I became a reader as an adult. J.K. Rowling’s writing captivated me. I then turned to Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games series. Since then, I’ve read Tolkien (Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit), Veronica Roth (Divergent Series), Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game universe of books), Neal Stephenson (Anathem), and many more. Can you see a theme? I love to read science fiction and fantasy. Many of the above authors inspire my writing, especially the first two. Their stories present a fictional struggle and center on how various real personalities react. I hope that is how others feel about Project Renaissance Man.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Last month, I released Project Renaissance Man, a coming of age dystopian novel. Synopsis: 17 years after billions die in an apocalypse, the few hundred survivors are the most brilliant (Renaissance Men and Women, called RMs) and their less brilliant, Stepford-like children. What will happen when a small band of the teenagers, led by the President’s subservient son (Matthew Cane) and loner Sophie Jackson, learn the truth about their harmonious society?
Set in Washington D.C. in 2037, the story includes young romance, high-tech devices, and martial arts, but the core of the story focuses on the relationships between Matthew (who is smart, but doubts himself), Sophie (who is confident and looking for change), her brother David (who is autistic and so much more), Bobby (who is intelligent and is the last living African American), and Rich (who is crafty and has strange sense of humor). Can they use their diverse talents and backgrounds to overcome an unknown, brilliant enemy?
After the inspiration I mention above, it took me about four months to write the first draft-140,00 words long and clearly written by a laywer. I took the next eight years to learn the craft, with the assistance of editors and a writing group, as well as other talented people. Finally, in late 2017, I knew the 85,000-word novel was ready. Why? Because I now loved the book.
The story only begins with our recently released stories-Project Renaissance Man and Project RM: Genesis (a short story that chornicles the beginning of the government agency). We plan to release two more Project RM novels, continuing the coming of age story of Matthew Cane. We also plan to release seven more short stories in the Genesis series. The eight Cold War serials will combine to form the prequel about the beginnings of Project RM.
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