The Story Behind ‘For the Love of St. Nick’ by Garasamo Maccagnone

Over the years, I listened carefully to many of my wife’s stories. Her father was Commander Blake Field, a naval academy standout and veteran of the Korean, Vietnam, and Persian Gulf wars. I obviously patterned the commander in my story after him.

Prior to her parents’ divorce, my wife lived the typical military lifestyle, with the family moving every couple of years to far off lands. Often, her father went on secret cold war missions and I recalled listening to my wife tell me how frightened she was as a girl that her father would never return. That of course, sparked my interest and was the sentiment I built off of years later when I decided to write this story.

The other major incident, which inspired me a great deal, happened while I worked at a hospital in my early thirties. One morning after my shift was over, a priest I knew at the hospital divulged that a young mother died during childbirth the previous night. He used the term placenta previa and went on to explain what had happened and why he was told the woman passed on.

Together, somehow, over a fifteen- to twenty-year period these stories found their way to the forefront of my mind, and served as the mechanisms that launched my tale. From there, I simply needed to create the right setting and to apply my craft.

 

Garasamo Maccagnone studied creative writing and literature under noted American writers Sam Astrachan and Stuart Dybek at Wayne State University and Western Michigan University. A college baseball player as well, Maccagnone met his wife Vicki as a junior at WMU. The following year, after injuring his throwing arm, Maccagnone left school and his baseball ambitions to marry Vicki. After a two year stint at both W.B. Doner and BBDO advertising agencies, Maccagnone left the industry to apply his knowledge of marketing in a new venture in an up-and-coming industry. Maccagnone created a company called, “Crate and Fly,” and turned it from a store front in 1984 to a world-wide multi-million dollar shipping corporation by 1994.  

In the mid 90’s Maccagnone decided to fulfill the promise of his writing career, by first penning the children’s book, The Suburban Dragon and then following up with a collection of short stories and poetry entitled, The Affliction of Dreams. His literary novel, St. John of the Midfield was published in 2007, followed by his For the Love of St. Nick, which was released in 2008.  Maccagnone expanded the original version of For the Love of St. Nick and had the book illustrated for a new release in June 2009. 

Garasamo “Gary” Maccagnone lives today in Shelby Township, Michigan, with his wife Vicki and three children. You can visit Gary online at www.garasamomaccagnone.com.

EMBITTERED JUSTICE by Michaela Riley: “a labor of love…”

Writing my first book Embittered Justice was what some would call a labor of love. Inspiration for the book started when I had the personal misfortune of spending time in a court room. I listened carefully as cases were presented and the fates of defendants were left in the hands of the defense, prosecution and a judge. The types of cases were diverse but the single common element was about making a deal or plea agreement. I watched in horror as the conversations in the hallway were whispered about what a defendant would accept and how lives would be changed forever. It didn’t seem to matter what the elements of the cases were; only that the outcome was based on the networking experience of the attorney. The secretive proceedings would cast doubt in my mind on the legitimacy of the system that had no respect for the defendant, innocent or guilty. Legal or administrative bodies with strict ruling and secretive proceedings metaphorically are sometimes called star chambers. This term is intended to cast doubt on the legitimacy of proceedings in the judicial system.

“A LIE GETS HALFWAY AROUND THE WORLD BEFORE THE TRUTH HAS A CHANCE TO GET ITS PANTS ON.” SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL

Journal entries and statistics turned into a story of one woman’s courageous fight against a judicial system that had failed her in many ways. It was important to tell the story in a way that would shed light on the personal trials and struggle an innocent defendant must endure to speak against corruption.

Michaela Riley is the author of EMBITTERED JUSTICE.  You can visit her website at www.michaelariley.com.

HONOR DUE by D.H. Brown: “I have been asked this question many times and I still don’t have a slick answer.”

I have been asked this question many times and I still don’t have a slick answer. It all started to meld about 3 years ago when, with some encouragement from my doctor and therapist, I started writing down the bones of a couple long-held story lines. Much is autobiographical blended with parts of many people who have made an impression on me. I could see in my mind’s eye the main character, the Major, as I’ve known a man or two like him. I spent many a long night working on developing him. More than six months. As well as the book’s other characters. Then one day I decided I’d dangled my feet in the water long enough and it was time to swim. HONOR DUE was essentially finished in 3 months. The locale is real easy to write about. I fell in love with the Pacific Northwest rainforest 26 years ago, and have never looked back. The vast tracks of timberland make me feel as if anyone could hide out here forever. I’d always thought the West End of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula would lend itself to some sort of mystery or thriller, and is a fine piece of real estate for people who want to mind their own business.

Back to the book. I knew I wanted to write something that felt authentic. I wanted the characters to be alive in their environment and to describe the beauty of this wonderful corner of God’s green earth. I hope ‘The Citizen Warrior’ series encompasses this objective. So many books today turn me off with action that can’t possibly happen and with a cast of characters I wouldn’t have to dinner. They’re neurotic, full of angst and can’t seem to tie their own shoes without agonizing over it. They bumble and stumble along until I want to reach into the page and give ‘em a good shake, telling them “to get on with it!” When I read about an assassin, I want to read about a person I can believe will kill you without blinking an eye. Bang! You’re dead! That’s what I did with the Major. I figured that after 35 years in the world’s killing fields and was still alive, his days of making fundamental errors in judgment were over. You cross him, and he won’t be asking you why you did it. After you’re dead, if the why interests him he might look into the matter. Otherwise you just stepped into high doodoo and ain’t getting a second chance.

D.H. Brown is the author of HONOR DUE. You can visit his website at www.dhbrownbooks.com.

D.H.’s virtual book tour is brought to you by the fine folks of Pump Up Your Book Promotion and choreographed by Jean Lauzier.

ST. JOHN OF THE MIDFIELD by Garasamo Maccagnone

There is a soccer trainer in Michigan by the name of Jordan Mitkov. As in the story, by chance, our paths crossed when my son Garrett went out for a team Jordan trained.

There was a moment early in the relationship when Mitkov explained to Garrett and I what type of individual and what type of temperament was needed to play the midfield position. He elaborated that a midfielder had to be a good person, a person who would sacrifice for the team, an individual with strong enough character to be willing to give up the ball and the glory for the sake of the team. For around ten years, that conversation burned in my mind while I wrestled with how to build a story around it.

Meanwhile, during that period of time, my son Garrett, who was considered to be an extraordinary player, had to deal with injustices based simply on the fact he was playing on a team coached by Mitkov and assisted by me. For instance, once after a game at an indoor complex, my son Garrett was approached by the Director of the boys program with the Olympic Development Program. Two other boys, who witnessed the discussion, now play for the University of Michigan varsity soccer team. The Olympic Development Program is sponsored by the national and state soccer organizations as a means to identify superior soccer talent.

In this particular case, I watched from the other side of the field as the Director put his arm around my son while talking to him as they walked. When the boys came over to my side, one of the boys, named Santos, told me the director was really hot for Garrett to play on the ODP team. “Coach,” Santos said to me. “He said if there was ever a player meant to be on ODP it was Garrett.”

Two weeks later, when I arrived at the ODP tryout, I noticed a blank stare on the Director’s face when I walked up to sign Garrett up for the team. His Adams apple plunged like a fishing lure underwater when he recognized me as Garrett’s father. Two hours later, when the names were called off from the first cut list, my son’s name was read aloud. My son, who was the leading scorer in the league, and considered to be one of the best players in the State, was cut from the ODP team on the very first cut.
It was from moments like that, and many others I could write another complete novel about, that the story of “St. John of the Midfield,” was incubated.

The book chronicles the hypocrisy, the hyper-sensitivity and the antipathy, of the soccer establishment toward an aging coach whose approach to the game is totally misunderstood. Unfortunately, in life, and in the story, those who are innocent get caught up in the destructive force such hatred brings about.

“St. John of the Midfield,” is a story that clearly defines for the reader the nature of good and evil. Though the soccer theme is only one thread of the entire story, the treatment of Jordan Mitkov and my son was the catalyst for the creation of the story.

Garasamo Maccagnone is the author of ST. JOHN OF THE MIDFIELD.  You can visit his website at www.garasamomaccagnone.com.

THE DOWRY BRIDE by Shobhan Bantwal

I like to call my fledgling writing career a “Menopausal Epiphany.” I had not written a single creative word (other than school and college essays) until I hit 50 — a landmark year that brought home the ravages of menopause and then some. Fighting Mother Nature was a losing battle, so I decided to put those yo-yoing hormones to creative use instead.

My muses came alive along with my menopausal woes, and I started writing articles and short stories for a number of publications. THE DOWRY BRIDE project was born much later, after I had a taste of minor publishing successes.

Growing up in India, the horror stories about dowry-related abuse had always been abundant — a wealth of fodder for a creative mind. But thankfully that kind of violence had never touched my life. I was lucky to be born in an enlightened community that eschewed dowry. Nonetheless the disturbing topic stayed in the back of my mind.

The fact that atrocities like dowry deaths continue unhindered today in India, despite anti-dowry laws, sparked the idea for the novel. Also, as far as my knowledge went, dowry had not been the main theme in any fiction book published in the United States. I wanted to give American readers a rare glimpse into an archaic practice that still persists in the twenty-first century in certain parts of the world.

But in spite of its controversial topic, THE DOWRY BRIDE has all the elements of popular fiction: romance and intrigue, a young bride in jeopardy, a gallant hero, humor and anguish, betrayal and hope. Notwithstanding the drama, adventure, and action essential to a work of fiction, I have tried to paint a realistic portrait of a culture that is simple yet complex in many ways, abundant yet lacking in some areas, progressive yet shockingly primitive.

Please visit my website: www.shobhanbantwal.com for the book cover, an excerpt, information on the book, my Indian recipes, articles, short fiction, and pictures depicting life in India.

Shobhan Bantwal is the author of THE DOWRY BRIDE (Kensington, Oct. ‘07). You can visit her website at http://www.shobhanbantwal.com/.

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