A-R International: Marcello Di Cintio

Another author for your consideration…

Books: Publishing, Reading, Writing

Marcello Di Cintio
Authors-Readers International

Photo credit: Monique de St. Croix

I was born in Calgary and studied Microbiology and English at the University of Calgary. I was also a member of the university wrestling team. I graduated in 1997 with a pair of degrees (a BA and BSc).

Later that year, I traveled to West Africa with a volunteer organization and taught biology in a Ghanaian village for three months. When my volunteer placement was complete, I wandered through western and northern Africa for nine months. My stories from Africa resulted in my first book, Harmattan: Wind Across West Africa. This won the Henry Kriesel Award for Best First Book.

In December 1999, hot with millennium-fever, I traveled to Jerusalem to watch the clock turn on 2000. I wandered throughout Israel and Egypt before returning to Calgary to begin a career as a freelance writer. Since then…

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A-R International: Mary Smith

Another indie author worth checking out…

Books: Publishing, Reading, Writing

Mary Smith
Authors-Readers International

I was born on Islay. My family moved to the mainland when I was seven and I grew up in Castle Douglas in south west Scotland.

I worked for ten years with Oxfam in Lancashire, fundraising and campaigning on development issues. The next ten years were spent first in Pakistan, then Afghanistan, where I worked for a small health organisation primarily concerned with leprosy and mother and childcare. My experiences living in those countries inform much of my writing.

I returned to Castle Douglas when my son was five years old so he could have somewhere to put down his own roots.

I have always written. As a child I wrote adventure stories in my own books made from wallpaper off-cuts and as a teenager I wrote very bad love poetry. For most of my life I’ve kept a journal. While still working in Afghanistan I…

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Another Sad Chapter in the Story of Mankind

Did you know that Charles Manson co-wrote a book containing his “true confessions”? It’s true – it’s available on Amazon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

He also recorded an album. Actually he is credited with many records – the last of which (The Lost Vacaville Tapes) was released in 2013.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Did you also know that the Unabomber’s Manifesto is available on Amazon for $9.95?

There are also books written by John Wayne Gacy, David Berkowitz and quite a few other notorious killers.

 

I’m sure the list of books written by the worst members of society is surprisingly long, which is a little disconcerting. Not exactly the finest in American Literature, but when it comes to art, whether the written word, recorded music or any other medium, one man’s art is another man’s trash – and vice-versa.

Would it be fair to lump Manson, Gacy and Berkowitz in the same category as Mark Twain, Harper Lee and J. D. Salinger (each of whom has had attempts made to ban their books from school curriculums).

Who is to say which books are good or which ones are bad?

Nobody.

That’s who.

Which brings me to the inspiration behind today’s rant.

This story;

 

https://pen.org/press-release/proposed-book-banning-bill-in-missouri-could-imprison-librarians/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-pug&fbclid=IwAR0uEnZHDx67lBmsXxVZhe72LxW8T1-d6Apdap80JwZwXiarwOPV8PDAoC8

 

This is the third time I’ve blogged about censorship in one form or another – once here and once here –  and it really pisses me off.

Is it just me, or does the concept of banning books from a public library bring with it a bit of deja-vu?

Trying to legislate morality is like trying to prevent your car from breaking down by only driving it on “the good roads.”

It just doesn’t work that way.

I am not an expert in sociology, but it seems to me that banning books only creates a “forbidden fruit” mentality.

This whole affair reminds of the song Harper Valley PTA (Jeannie C. Riley 1968) – where a select group of hypocrites makes it their mission in life to preach about character, morals and integrity.

Does anybody, beside me, see the inherent problem there?

 

As always – thank you for reading

Time for Another Free Book!

 It’s been a while since I gave away a book – and because a reader left a very nice review of Eyewitness Blues on Amazon today let’s give that one away!

First things first…here is the review:

 

As any author (independent or otherwise) will tell you – getting a nice review is (in my best Rhode Island vernacular) wicked awesome! It’s arguably why we write…it’s at least one of the top reasons. I wish I could personally thank each and every person who leaves a review, but Amazon keeps the reviewer’s identity private. So this is my way of saying thank you!

About Eyewitness Blues…I remember the moment I came up with the “what if” for the story;

The owner of a local pizza parlor had been arrested for assault after attacking a customer who tried to return a calzone. Come to find out – said pizza parlor owner was living here as part of the witness protection program (from New Jersey I believe). Here is a local news story from the incident.

Oddly enough – after the incident made the news he disappeared.

There was lots of speculation around the water cooler about where he had “disappeared to” – maybe the feds had relocated him, or maybe his “friends” from Jersey had paid him a visit.

I never found out, but while talking about it to a co-worker one day I thought; What if there was a guy who was convinced that the only way to escape his crappy life was the witness protection program. The only problem being…he hasn’t witnessed anything.

That was all it took!

Please download your FREE copy of Eyewitness Blues. If you’ve already read it please pass this along to somebody who might enjoy it. You are my best marketing representative!

The giveaway begins at midnight Tuesday, January 14 and runs until midnight Sunday, January 19.

 

As always – thank you for reading