I have the pleasure of talking to author Sverrir Sigurdsson on the blog.

His book, Viking Voyager: An Icelandic Memoir is a prize winner of The Wishing Shelf Book Awards organized by a group of UK authors.

“Not only a well written memoir, but an interesting take on Icelandic history from post-World War Two until present day. A RED RIBBON WINNER and highly recommended.” – The Wishing Shelf Book Awards

Get the book on Amazon.

Read on to know more about Sverrir Sigurdsson, his book and advice for all his readers!

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Tell us a little about yourself.

I’m originally from Iceland, born and raised there.  At the age of 19, I left my country to explore the world.  My first stop was Finland.  After getting an architecture degree there, I took on an international career so I could see the world and have somebody pay for my travels.  I’ve visited 60 countries on 5 continents, and done work from building a harem for the ruler of Abu Dhabi to building schools in poor countries in Africa and elsewhere.

What prompted you to start writing your memoir?

I love telling stories of my international adventures.  My friends encouraged me to write them down.  So I did and saved them as “episodes” on my computer, kind of like dumping photos in a shoebox.  Then I showed some pages to my wife, Veronica Li, who’s a published author.  She read them and was surprised to discover what an interesting guy I was.  She helped me put my episodes into a memoir called Viking Voyager: An Icelandic Memoir.

We wanted to make it a human interest story that appeals to a wide audience.  At the time of our writing, Iceland was a tourist hot spot.  (In a country of 360,000, we had 2 million tourists in 2019!)  The literature on Iceland, however, was mostly travel guides.  We decided I could tell tourists about my country by introducing them to my family, our way of life, and the road we’ve traveled to be where we are today.

How easy/difficult was it to write your memoir?

Writing is never easy, but fortunately we were two heads working together.  We make a good team because we’re so different.  I’m a hardware person good at brick and mortar stuff, while Veronica is a software person, in tune with feelings and human relationships.  Our strengths and weaknesses complemented each other.

During the pandemic lockdown, we were most happy to have our writing to obsess about.  We would have gone crazy otherwise!

How much time did you spend on writing on average per day?

Veronica and I both like to write in the morning.  From around 9am to noon, we would be at our respective desks.  When something needs to be discussed, we know exactly where to find each other.

What is one thing you discovered on this journey that you did not know beforehand?

I’ve always known Icelandic fishermen have a tough life, especially before the advent of modern technology.  But I didn’t know how tough it was until I listened to a recording of my uncle Óli, which was part of the National Library’s cultural heritage project.  My uncle, a fisherman since the age of 10, talked about the blustery, icy weather, the cramped conditions on the boat, the monotony of the food (fish and potatoes), the nonstop work once the boat reached a fishing ground, and the danger of storms.  Many have perished, including my own grandfather and his first-born.

Reliving the hardships of previous generations makes me appreciate all the more the progress Iceland has made in a short time.  From a dirt poor nation, it has become one of the most prosperous in the world.

How do you feel about your Viking ancestry?

First of all, are Vikings good guys or bad guys?  To Icelanders, they’re heroes, adventurers who brought home wealth and glory.  To people of the British Isles, they’re definitely villains who pillaged and plundered.  This type of Viking, however, lasted only 200 years.  After that period, Icelanders left home to serve a foreign leader and prove themselves in battle before returning home.

Modern-day Vikings are yet another breed.  Being a small nation Icelanders have to go overseas to study and learn from more advanced nations.  I think of myself as an example.  I left Iceland to study architecture in Finland, and afterwards I traveled the world to acquire experience.  Except that I didn’t return home as planned.  I’m now settled in the US.  My heart, however, will always be Icelandic.  Be they heroes or villains, I admire my Viking forefathers for their self-sufficiency, resilience, and endurance.

What kind of impact did this journey of discovery have on you?

My friends often call me a Viking for running around in short sleeves when they’re shivering in jackets.  I never took their joking to heart.  But writing my memoir made me discover how truly Viking I am.  My childhood in Iceland taught me all the skills I needed to survive in the world.  The moment I finished high school, I left my homeland to make my fortune.  Retracing my journey makes me realize that I’ve indeed found my fortune, not in riches but in the wealth of experiences gathered from the places I’ve visited and people met.

What kind of books do you like to read? Give us some examples or recommendations.

I like to read thrillers, especially those that involve international politics and intrigue.  Some of my favorite authors are Frederik Forsyth, John le Carré, and Richard North Patterson.

Which is your favourite place to visit or talk about?

Despite my worldwide travels, my favorite place is still Iceland.  I guess you’ve heard about the volcano eruption going on there.  Icelanders call it a “tourist eruption,” spectacular fireworks that attract tourists but does no harm.  This area is part of the volcano belt that gave Iceland its name, “land of ice and fire.”  In south Iceland, where I spent summers working on a farm, glaciers lie atop volcanoes gurgling and biding their time to erupt.  My book cover shows the scenery of this area: in the foreground stands a cliff with a doorway carved by the sea, in the middle a mountain that was once an island, and in the background the snow-capped volcano that shut down Trans-Atlantic air travel in 2010.  The landscape is the wild and wonderful creations of violent volcanic activity.  Each of these features was formed when fire met ice or seawater, causing the rapidly cooling lava to turn into a rock formation called “tuff” or palagonite.  Iceland is full of such fantastic landscape.

What do you do when you aren’t writing?

My true love is carpentry.  In my youth I’d aspired to become a carpenter when I grew up.  My older sister nudged me to take it one step further and become an architect.  I’m most grateful to her for helping me choose my career.  In my heart, though, I remain a carpenter.  One woodwork project or another is always on my plate.  I just finished building a fence around my backyard to keep out the deer.  Hope it works!

Finally, what message do you want to share with us readers?

I encourage everyone to travel, not just as a tourist, but to live and work for a spell in a foreign country.  You’ll be surprised what kind of opportunities you’ll find.  Most of all, you’ll be surprised to find out who you are and what you’re capable of.