Peyman Pejman is an award-winning journalist with over 20 years of experience. He has worked with respected newspapers, news agencies and radio stations such as The Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, Cox Newspapers, The Associated Press, United Press International, Reuters, Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Pejman has extensive experience in the Middle East and the Arab world. His tenure in the Middle East has corresponded with important timelines in the region: the Iranian revolution, the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the Gulf Wars and the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
In addition to his journalistic career, he has been a media and communications professor and a media consultant/advisor/trainer.
What was the hardest part of writing your book?
Honestly, the hardest part was to muster the discipline to write constantly, every day, despite the fact that obviously I had a full time job while I was writing the book!
When did you first start writing and when did you finish your first book?
I started writing it sometime in 2007 I think I finished it early summer of 2009
Can you tell us about your challenges in getting your first book published (if any)?
Oh, I had plenty!! I first tried to find my own agent and write many emails. I don’t remember now how many rejection emails I had and how many people simply just didn’t respond. But after a while (I think it was few months), it was apparent that I would not find an agent. I then approached a couple (two or three) friends who have been successful writers, and they introduced me to their agent. The general response I got was something like, “We like the book and the story. but it is not a genre that we think would sell enough copies to make it worth our while.” At that point, with my pride obviously hurt, I had two choices: to give it up or publish it myself. I believed then and still believe that Age of Intolerance is a good book, is an interesting read, is about a very topical subject for those who care about politics and international affairs, and I hope it sells well!
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