Not long ago I went into my bank to deposit some checks. I saw a display on a board that was prominetly displayed in the lobby. It was across the room from where I was standing but the picture that was next to the write up was familiar. Upon closer examination I found that the beautiful woman pictured was my sweet niece. "Home Town Hero" I whispered. I read the things it said about her. She had helped raise her 4 brothers after their mother, my sister, passed away at a young age. Tina was 14 and a very responsible young girl. She also married young, finished high school, and started her own business. She ownes "The Added Touch of Hair Design". On the paper it was stated that the people who come to her salon leave, not only looking better, but feeling better for having had contact with her. She allows absolutely no gossip in her shop and has been known to pray for her clients and lift them up. Now she is the legal guardian of her neighbor who suffered a stroke some years ago. She sees to her care and coordinates her caregivers and business. Tina is a hero.
I happened to have a camera in my purse so I took the picture and did my deposit. When I got in the car it hit me and I sat there and cried. Her mama would have been so proud of her.
Upon reflecting on this I have thought about my various other nieces and nephews. There are 20 nieces and nephews and 20+ great-nieces and nephews. Among their number are many "heros". Some are teachers, preachers, doctors, therapists, plumbers, contractors, consultants, stay-at-home moms, and every other profession. They are the "salt of the earth" type people. Most of them would do whatever it takes to help their family or friends. I love them all so much.
This week I am interviewing a young man who is a hero in his own right. Please take the time to read his story.
1. What is your name and what is the title of your book(s)?
My name is Steve Newman and the title of my first book is “The Night Eagles Soared” and the second book, which I am currently working on is titled, “Burnt Yellow and Red.”
2. What is one thing you think your readers would like to know about you?
Well, I am a real person, a real person with an extraordinary past. I spent twenty one years as a member of the Green Berets and that had a profound impact upon my entire life. By the grace of God, I came home in one peace time after time and I hope that folks can enjoy my book and perhaps take away a bit of pride in their military.
3. When did you know that you wanted to become a writer?
While I was in the Army, guys would always say stuff like, “Can you believe that we are getting paid to do the kind of things they write books about!” It was true, but I didn’t decide to actually become a writer until February of 2008. That is when my wife told me she wanted me to quit my full time job and start writing that book I always talked about. She made it possible for me to take the time off and complete my first book, “The Night Eagles Soared.” Even then, I didn’t really think of myself as a writer, but every time I crossed a threshold, every small success that took place, every time I finished a chapter, I slowly realized that I was becoming a writer. I didn’t really set out to become a writer. I still saw myself as a soldier who just wanted to write a book about an idea I had. My sweet wife started to introduce me as “Her husband the writer” and I would blush and kick the floor or some dirt around depending on where we were. It wasn’t until after I received word from Tate Publishing that I was one of the select few to be selected for publication that it started to sink in, I had become a writer. That is when I started my next project and the rest is history. Perhaps one day I will be famous. I must add that my mother was an English Teacher and unpublished Author and it was her love of language and desire to write that inspired me.
4. What are your strong points in your writing style or methods?
My wife says it’s my style of writing, but I am not exactly sure what that style is. I used mostly first person narrative in “The Night Eagles Soared” and I am using third person limited narrative in “Burnt Yellow and Red.” I just tell the story as it comes to me.
When I was younger, back in 79, I took an English composition course at the University of Oklahoma. In a classroom with over two hundred students, in a class room that looked more like a movie theater than anything else. The professor gave us an assignment to write a story about a person, place and occupation. I went home that afternoon and pumped the story out in about two or three hours, sharpening my pencil several times, filling the blue booklet, I finished the story using all the pages and both sides of the back cover.
Two weeks after I turned in my work, I went to class and it was standing room only. Everybody must have shown up to get their grade for that paper. The professor walked in and we all took our seats, some on the steps that went down through the middle of the classroom down to the professor’s podium. It was soon very quiet as he walked in with an assistant who was carrying all the booklets under his chin. The professor took his place behind the podium, reached into his briefcase and pulled out one of the booklets and said; “I thought I would give this student an F. The grammar in this paper is terrible; but I would like to read it to you all and see what kind of reaction it gets from a live audience.”
Horrified, I sat there with my mouth open as he began to read my paper. I don’t want to retell the entire story that I had written but as the professor got to the love scene, the girl sitting next to me elbowed my shoulder. Holding her hand over her mouth she said, “Can you believe somebody would write that in a class like this.” The entire classroom was gasping, then laughing, and clapping at the end. When it all settled down, the professor said, “well I guess I can’t give this person an F, it appears that he is a natural born story teller.’
Then he announced my name and asked me to come down to the front. I walked down the steps, and as I did the entire classroom broke into applause. When I reached the podium the professor handed me the paper, on the front cover he had written a large F with a circle around it. He had crossed it off with a red marker and then he had written C-, that as my grade. As he handed me the paper, he said, “Your grammar stinks, do better next time!”
I guess my strong point is that I love to tell a story, that is how I relate to the world, and believe it or not, that is how I met my wife! I haven’t stopped telling her stories; well, I guess I should say I haven’t stopped talking since the day we met!
5. Are you a reader?
I wouldn’t say that I am an avid reader, but I do enjoy reading non-fiction and of course I love reading Historical Military Fiction like my book, “The Night Eagles Soared.”
6. What are you reading right now?
Joel Osteen’s “Your Best Life Now, 7 Steps to Living at Your Full Potential.” Joel’s book is a refreshing look at how God has equipped us to face life’s challenges through faith. He does an excellent job of detailing the importance of how our words, thoughts, and deeds shape our vision of the world, and our place within it. He presents an extraordinarily uplifting and positive message, something we could all use. I tell everyone that Joel’s book has helped me to stay focused on the future and the possibilities of a positive life lived in faith. I think many people could benefit from a message like that.
7. Do you have another book that you are working on and haven’t submitted for publication?
Yes I do! It is titled “Burnt Yellow and Red,” and it is about a young boy named Kyle. Kyle has a tendency to count things, and to keep the numbers going in his head, that takes up a lot of time and energy. It keeps him from focusing on other things that most children love. He is special but he doesn’t know why. Folks say that about him and rub his head in amazement; his hair, as white as snow.
“Burnt Yellow and Red” is set in the late 1960’s at a small rural school in South Western Oklahoma and follows Kyle as he comes out of his shell and learns how to relate to the world and others in a normal manner. He starts his journey as the family leaves California during what I call the reverse dust bowl era when his family moved from the desert in South Eastern California back to Oklahoma.
I haven’t quite figured out where the story will end, but I am having a blast developing the characters and following the journey as it unfolds. Kyle is a very special Kid; perhaps he is just a little too smart for his own good.
8. What are your biggest obstacles to writing and how do you overcome them?
Just getting started each day, it is very difficult to turn creativity on and just as hard to turn it off. I try not to read back through what I have written before starting again the next day. I’ll read the last paragraph and take it from there. Then, if I can just get the first sentence of the next paragraph started, I’ll usually knock out an entire page without stopping.
I’ve learned to also set short term goals, with one overall long term goal, finish the book. It has been my experience that writing more than two or three pages a day is very, very difficult. I feel satisfied if I can complete one page each day, although there was a three week period while I was trying to finish “The Night Eagles Soared” that I couldn’t stop writing and I knocked out four chapters, over 120 pages in that short period of time. It took me six months to write the first six chapters.
The other thing I will do when I am finished for the day is to quickly go back through the entire chapter, editing for spelling and obvious grammar mistakes. When I finish a chapter I will read it out load to my wife. She says she enjoys hearing me read but I think she just puts up with it to make me happy. Either way, it helps me to read out loud to an audience. It helps me hear the flow or rhythm of the sentences and gauge reaction to the scenes.
I just read this to my wife and she said, “I really like to hear your stories dear,” and then she winked.
9. Please put a description of each of your books here.
“The Night Eagles Soared” is set immediately after the attacks on 9-11 as a Special Forces team departs from its base of operations in flight towards Afghanistan. They are the initial infiltration of American troops into that country as the hunt for Osama Bin Laden and the effort to take down the Taliban are set into motion.
Throughout the flight, the Team Sergeant; Mike, examines his life as a member of the Green Berets and the experiences that placed him into the position of being the first Senior Non-Commissioned Officer to lead his team into combat via a High Altitude Low Opening parachute Operation (HALO) since the Vietnam War.
“The Night Eagles Soared” tells the story of one man’s effort to succeed and survive as a Special Forces soldier throughout many operations over twenty years leading up to the liberation of Afghanistan from its oppressors.
About the Author:
In my first work of fiction “The Night Eagles Soared” I drew upon my own experiences having served for over two decades with the United States Army Special Forces. Over the years, I oversaw and participated in numerous military operations to include operations as part of the Global War on Terror. I hold a Bachelor in Science, Business Administration from Columbia College, Columbia Mo., and I continue to work towards a Masters Degree in Asymmetric Warfare. I live in South Florida with my wife Brig and I am writing everyday about the world in which we all must live.
The description of my second book Burnt Yellow and Red” is written above in line 7.
10. How can readers contact you or purchase your books? Please put your website or blog here.
“The Night Eagles Soared” will be released sometime in the summer of 2010 and I will start taking advance orders for signed pre-release copies in January for delivery sometime prior to the release date. We still haven’t set up a formal process as of yet to take the orders so just send me an email at: sbnou@live.com
It is great to get to know the writers. If you missed one of the past interviews of the talented authors I have been interviewing be sure to visit my blog and catch up. These are interesting people!
http://nansjourney.blogspot.com
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