Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: Little Flower
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://www.tedoswald.com/
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STATE:
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Married; wife’s name Katharine.
EDUCATION:University of California, Davis, B.A.; American University (Cairo, Egypt), graduate diploma in forced migration and refugee studies); Drexel University, J.D.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Attorney, policy analyst, and writer. Christian Legal Clinics, Philadelphia, PA, attorney; Mennonite Central Committee, Port-au-Prince, Haiti, policy analyst and advocacy coordinator; World Relief, Immigrant Legal Services program director, 2017—, immigration attorney.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Ted Oswald is a writer, attorney, and policy analyst. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Davis and a law degree from Drexel University, as well as a graduate diploma in forced migration and refugee studies from American University in Cairo, Egypt. He has worked as a lawyer for Christian Legal Clinics, in Philadelphia, and for the non-governmental organization (NGO), World Relief. Oswald served with his wife, Katharine, as a policy analyst and advocacy coordinator for the Mennonite Central Committee in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
Because We Are and There Is a Land
Because We Are is Oswald’s first book and the first installment in his “Libète Limyè Mystery” series. In it, he introduces the series’s protagonist, Libète, a Haitian orphan living in the slums of Cité Soleil. She and Jak, her best friend, encounter a murdered child and mother, and they decide to investigate. Their actions lead them into danger.
In an interview with Mario Acevedo, contributor to the Big Thrill website, Oswald discussed the inspiration behind the story. He stated: “The spark for the story was a little girl. Shortly after the 2010 earthquake that reduced so much of Port-au-Prince to rubble, I worked as a law student intern in Cité Soleil, a slum on the outskirts of Haiti’s capitol. During my days there, a girl of ten—incredibly bright, mischievous, and sharp-tongued—would flit through our office. Though she’d never solved a murder, I wouldn’t put it past her! The thought of casting a character inspired by her as the lead in a mystery became irresistible, and Libète, my protagonist, was born.”
In an interview with David Gaughran, which appeared on Gaughran’s self-titled website, Oswald described Because We Are as a nonprofit novel, meaning all of its proceeds go towards NGOs. He explained: “Because my day job as a legal aid lawyer pays the bills, I was freed to pursue this idea of publishing a ‘nonprofit novel’ where net proceeds are donated to a number of organizations working in Haiti that I respect. It’s sometimes hard to find the extra resources to give to causes I care about, and I thought that writing a book that would allow me–and by extension those who purchase the book–to support vital work was an exciting concept.” Oswald continued: “I admire examples of generosity spurring generosity, and I thought this was an interesting way to tie readers into the book’s special context and themes.” In an interview that appeared on the Tim Hoiland website, Oswald told Hoiland: “Because We Are presents a picture of struggle and hardship known in a particular place and time—in this case, a dangerous slum outside Port-au-Prince a few years ago—and desires to translate readers’ new or existing interest in Haiti from the page into the real world. That can be achieved through a number of means, whether it’s seeing funds donated from book purchases, fresh reflection and consideration of what our role is in correcting injustice.”
In There Is a Land, Libète learns a secret that puts her life into danger. She must flee to Jacmel, a town on the coast, and to the mountains in the northern region of Haiti.
Little Flower
Little Flower is a standalone novel by Oswald, which finds an unlikely pair of women investigating the murder of Ram Kumar. The women are Ram’s prostitute girlfriend, Meeta, and his former teacher, a nun named Sister Shanti.
A critic in Publishers Weekly offered a favorable assessment of Little Flower. The critic asserted: “Wry humor adds levity to this story.” The same critic concluded: “Oswald’s novel is a unique, lovely take on faith, understanding, forgiveness, and love.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Publishers Weekly, April 16, 2018, review of Little Flower, p. 67.
ONLINE
Because We Are website, https://www.becauseweare.com/ (September 7, 2018), author profile.
Big Thrill, http://www.thebigthrill.org/ (July 31, 2014), Mario Acevedo, author interview and review of Because We Are.
David Gaughran website, http://davidgaughran.com/ (August 2, 2013), David Gaughran, author interview.
Huffington Post, https://www.huffingtonpost.com/ (September 7, 2018), author profile.
Ted Oswald website, http://www.tedoswald.com/ (September 7, 2018).
Tim Hoiland website, https://timhoiland.com/ (July, 2012), Tim Hoiland, author interview.
World Relief website, https://worldreliefsacramento.org/ (September 7, 2018), author profile.
The Author of Because We Are and There is a Land
I entered into the world of writing with Because We Are: A Novel of Haiti.
It all began while a law student when I interned in a community in Haiti called Cité Soleil. Observing life there and building relationships, characters took hold and wouldn't let go. Between law briefs and academic papers, I began drafting my little story.
It's remained an exciting journey. While originally a self-published novel, Thomas & Mercer acquired Because We Are and republished it on July 22, 2014, just as my wife and I returned to Haiti to serve with Mennonite Central Committee as policy analysts. To undertake this work, we left our home in Philadelphia where I studied at the Drexel University School of Law and began my legal practice at Christian Legal Clinics of Philadelphia, a faith-based legal service provider. We're now back in the U.S. and excited for what will come next.
I hope to continue telling stories that provoke, enlighten, and transport you and other readers to corners of the world you might never visit. Please feel free to connect -- I'd love to hear from you!
Visit the website for Because We Are: A Novel of Haiti
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Ted Oswald
While a law student, Ted Oswald lived in Port-au-Prince and worked in Cité Soleil, where he became deeply invested in the community and met the feisty young girl who served as the inspiration for his character Libète. He currently serves in Haiti with his wife, Katharine, as policy analysts and advocacy coordinators with Mennonite Central Committee. Because We Are: A Novel of Haiti is his first novel.
EMAIL: ted.oswald@becauseweare.com
GOODREADS: Author Profile
FACEBOOK: Visit the Because We Are Fan Page / Friend Ted on Facebook
TWITTER: @because_we_are /@ted_oswald
Why tell this story?
"Circumstances in Haiti demanded it. During my four months there, Haiti was buffeted by a major hurricane, the return of a brutal dictator, protests surrounding national elections, and the outbreak of imported cholera that continues to kill in droves—and all of this just months after the most unimaginable human loss in the January 2010 earthquake. I wanted to tell a story set against this incredible and heart-wrenching backdrop."
http://www.becauseweare.com/the-author.html
Ted Oswald
Immigration Attorney
toswald@wr.org
Ted Oswald has served with World Relief since 2017 as the Immigrant Legal Services (ILS) program director where he provides immigration legal services, mobilizes volunteers, and offers community legal education seminars. He previously shared the policy analyst and advocacy coordinator roles with his wife at Mennonite Central Committee in Haiti, and was an inaugural legal fellow at Christian Legal Clinics of Philadelphia. A licensed attorney, Ted has a Juris Doctor from the Thomas R. Kline School of Law at Drexel University, a Graduate Diploma in Forced Migration and Refugee Studies from the American University in Cairo, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations from UC Davis. He is the author of three novels, Because We Are: A Novel of Haiti, There is a Land, and Little Flower.
https://worldreliefsacramento.org/leadership-0
Ted Oswald
Lawyer, Policy Analyst, Author of Because We Are: A Novel of Haiti
Ted Oswald lives in Port-au-Prince, Haiti where he is a policy analyst with Mennonite Central Committee, a development and peace agency of the Anabaptist churches in the U.S. and Canada. From Sacramento, California, he has worked as a public interest lawyer in Philadelphia and is the author of the Haiti-set mystery novel, Because We Are.
QUOTED: "Because We Are presents a picture of struggle and hardship known in a particular place and time—in this case, a dangerous slum outside Port-au-Prince a few years ago—and desires to translate readers’ new or existing interest in Haiti from the page into the real world. That can be achieved through a number of means, whether it’s seeing funds donated from book purchases, fresh reflection and consideration of what our role is in correcting injustice."
I’m excited to help spread the word about Because We Are, a new murder-mystery novel based in Cité Soleil, an infamous Haitian slum in Port-au-Prince, near the epicenter of the earthquake in January 2010.
Ted Oswald, the book’s author, is a Philadelphia-based lawyer who lived in Haiti while working with a human rights organization. During that time the idea for the novel was born. It’s a really compelling story, which is reason enough to read it, but Ted hopes it will have real-world impact as well.
This video has more of the story:
Here’s my brief interview with Ted about the project.
TH: Everyone’s familiar with nonprofit organizations, but few have ever heard of a nonprofit novel. So, what is it?
TO: In my conception, a “nonprofit novel” is fiction with a social conscience that inspires the world to greater justice and peace. Because We Are presents a picture of struggle and hardship known in a particular place and time—in this case, a dangerous slum outside Port-au-Prince a few years ago—and desires to translate readers’ new or existing interest in Haiti from the page into the real world. That can be achieved through a number of means, whether it’s seeing funds donated from book purchases, fresh reflection and consideration of what our role is in correcting injustice, or even more direct action on behalf of Haitians.
TH: On Indiegogo, you’ve already reached your $1,900 goal for editing, production, publicity, and distribution. Everything else you raise in the next nine days—as well as future profits from sales of the book—will go to support the work of a handful of small organizations in Haiti. Why did you choose to take this approach, and how did you choose which organizations to support?
TO: My wife and I lived in Haiti for several months and interned–her as an international development student, and me as a law student. We witnessed many organizations at work, both large and small. You see a lot of relief and development done in a disappointing way in Haiti. Whether paternalistic, wasteful, dependency-inducing or unresponsive to community needs, it makes you pay attention when you see examples of organizations doing a goodjob. The organizations selected for this campaign have long-standing commitments to partnering with Haitians; they have great reputations and proven track records in their different areas of work, whether those fields are human rights advocacy and promotion, education, microfinance, conflict resolution, or improving the environment.
Much of the book was inspired by conversations and experiences while on the ground in Haiti, and it somehow felt strange to profit financially from it. This model seemed a way to gather the support of others to give back to a country and people that deeply changed my life. Ultimately, I chose this model because it just felt right.
TH: Because We Are is scheduled for release in January 2013. When people read it, what kinds of responses would mean the most to you? Is the book simply a way to support the work of great organizations, or do you hope Because We Are becomes something more than that?
TO: Beyond the desire to draw attention to great organizations and aid their work, the book is an ambitious and emotional story in its own right. I’ll be pleased if even a few readers enjoy it and recommend it to others. But I do dream of something more.
The novels that have stuck with me over the years are ones that have something profound to say to society—books likeTo Kill a Mockingbird, Cry, the Beloved Country and Native Son. These are works of fiction that developed me as a person, and in turn impacted the world through my actions.
While not a polemic, Because We Are is also not a simple murder mystery. It has pointed criticism of the injustices that have led Haiti to become one of the most inequitable countries in the world, while telling a compelling story about two remarkable children struggling to see a grievous wrong righted. If Because We Are “sticks” with readers, if it can stir some reflection, growth and action, well, that would have to be the fulfillment of my greatest hope.
The Indiegogo campaign for Because We Are just has nine days left. Please visit the campaign page and check out the perks for various levels of support. If this seems like the kind of thing you can get behind, please consider pitching in to support the project.
You can read the novel’s first chapter here, and learn more about Ted here. You may also want to follow the project on Twitter or Facebook.
[Image credit: becauseweare.com]
QUOTED: "Because my day job as a legal aid lawyer pays the bills, I was freed to pursue this idea of publishing a “nonprofit novel” where net proceeds are donated to a number of organizations working in Haiti that I respect. It’s sometimes hard to find the extra resources to give to causes I care about, and I thought that writing a book that would allow me–and by extension those who purchase the book–to support vital work was an exciting concept."
"I admire examples of generosity spurring generosity, and I thought this was an interesting way to tie readers into the book’s special context and themes."
Giving It All Away – An Interview with Ted Oswald Writing
Posted on August 2, 201334 Comments
becauseweareBack in April, I stumbled across a wonderful novel called Because We Are: A Novel of Haiti by Ted Oswald. I think I was only half-way through when I started hunting him down on the internet to tell him how much I liked it.
I don’t usually chase people across cyberspace to give them a review, but this was a remarkable book.
I also knew that once you guys heard the backstory, you would want to know more. After a soupçon of cajoling, Ted agreed to be interviewed…
First of all I’d like to thank Ted for coming along today. For those who haven’t had the pleasure of reading Because We Are yet, perhaps you could kick off by telling us a little about the story and how you came to write it.
Sure thing. In short, it’s a literary murder mystery set against the backdrop of modern-day Haiti. But I think it’s a good deal more than that would suggest. I’ll share the book’s trailer since it fills in a lot of the backstory:
[vimeo http://vimeo.com/54813529]
For those unable to watch, in 2010, I was a law student and interned in Haiti months after the earthquake. The story is set in the community in which I worked, a notorious slum called Cité Soleil. It follows two unlikely detectives—children, brash Libète and brilliant Jak—as they try to solve the mystery behind a murdered mother and her infant child. But more than that, it’s a story about bigger themes: friendship, the struggle for justice in the face of impunity, sacrifice for the community, personal responsibility, faith and doubt in light of tragedy, and the foolishness of scarcity in a world of plenty.
That might actually be the first good book trailer I’ve seen. But I want to talk about something else. This blog focuses on authors trying to make a living from self-publishing. You take a very different approach. All profits from Because We Are go to a series of NGOs. Tell us a little about that decision.
Because my day job as a legal aid lawyer pays the bills, I was freed to pursue this idea of publishing a “nonprofit novel” where net proceeds are donated to a number of organizations working in Haiti that I respect. It’s sometimes hard to find the extra resources to give to causes I care about, and I thought that writing a book that would allow me–and by extension those who purchase the book–to support vital work was an exciting concept. I admire examples of generosity spurring generosity, and I thought this was an interesting way to tie readers into the book’s special context and themes.
You also ran a crowdfunding campaign to cover the publication costs. How did that go?
It went really well. I was exploring traditional publishing when I finished the manuscript and, thanks to blogs like this one, ended up climbing down the rabbit hole and emerging in this wonderful, shifting landscape of self-publishing. I wanted my book to be birthed before too long because of the current events it deals with, and I wanted to see it shared with others. Pursuing a longshot traditional publishing deal wouldn’t guarantee either of those. So I decided to crowdfund the book and launched a campaign on Indiegogo (you can check it out here).
Hardly any friends or family members knew that I’d been writing a novel in the prior year-and-a-half, and so when I announced it with this fully-formed campaign and video, a lot of them were excited to support me and the book. The fact that extra proceeds were donated to great organizations helped others I’d never met commit to the campaign. It was a great way to move a lot of copies without having a pre-established authorial platform.
I’ve since loved the DIY process of self-publishing. Building my own website, writing my own blurb, learning Adobe InDesign, principles of book layout, social media, scripting videos, and assembling a team of friends to do the things I couldn’t, namely editing and cover design. Time-consuming? Yes. But thrilling? Also yes.
bloodied birdsThe subject matter of this book is quite close to my heart. I’ve worked for NGOs and traveled extensively in Latin America. One thing that jumped out at me was your portrayal of how institutions have failed the poor of Haiti, whether that’s the local police, the politicians, the UN, or even the large aid organizations. Regarding the latter two, this is something I saw first-hand in Thailand after the tsunami, in Kosovo after the war, and in the shanty towns of Peru. From what I saw, the local grassroots NGOs were invariably more effective in making a difference on the ground. Could you explain a little more about that in the context of Haiti?
I didn’t know you had those experiences! Because We Are does highlight some of the complexities of foreign aid and intervention.
Many are passively familiar with Haiti’s travails. The legacy of slavery, rapacious leaders, political instability, endemic poverty and natural and manmade disasters makes for an incredibly complicated context.
Injected into that mix are literally thousands of foreign NGOs operating on Haiti’s soil. The humanitarian impulse to relieve suffering is a good one, but good intentions, inexperience, and a rush to see results can hurt more than help. For NGOs to have a lasting, positive impact in areas like public health or economic development, they need to do the hard, long work of listening well and building relationships marked by trust, respect, and fairness. Grassroots NGOs are often run by Haitians, or have significant Haitian leadership, and the importance of this can’t be understated. In my limited experience, organizations of this type have the best chance of seeing their work strengthen communities and result in positive outcomes.
I’d like to move on and talk about the style of the book. It’s ostensibly a murder mystery, albeit one with an exotic setting, but the style is very literary. There is a particular device you employ which is quite unusual. For those who haven’t read it, this story isn’t told in a strictly linear fashion. The narrative jumps all over the place – not just back-and-forth from two fixed points in the timeline. It makes for a fascinating read, but another aspect of this device is that after each narrative switch the following scene opens in present tense, continues like that for a paragraph or two, then switches back to past tense. At first I was wondering if it was an error, or whether I had missed something, but then I realized that perhaps the point of the sections in present tense was to ground the reader in the narrative, to say to the reader YOU ARE HERE before continuing with the story. Was that the intention?
kings nothingAbsolutely. I have to confess two influences that might contextualize the time jumps and tense shifts. I love Cry, the Beloved Country and the TV series Lost. These both shaped the story’s style and storytelling sensibility. Alan Paton (the author of Cry) used these interesting tense shifts in the middle of scenes or between scenes. It was beautifully inconsistent, defied convention, and created a real sense of significance when a shift occurred. Now, if you watched Lost, there was this great sound effect that would indicate a change in time between scenes, and the tense-shift for me was an attempt to be that sound, grounding the reader in the new moment and setting. I also tried to give a subtle visual cue to help navigate the time jumps, in that the protagonist’s small silhouette shifts direction based on whether the scene is a flashback or set in the present.
And what are your influences in a general sense? What do you like to read?
Consuming Edwidge Danticat’s work was a prerequisite to writing this; other specific influences (besides Alan Paton’s oeuvre) include Dave Egger’s What is the What and more light-hearted fare like the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series. I’ve been really taken with some classic Graham Greene novels as of late, and am catching up on more contemporary lit fic that fell by the wayside during my legal studies. Probably not a surprise, but I also appreciate a lot of nonfiction centered on Haiti; I just cracked Farewell, Fred Voodoo by Amy Wilentz last night and can tell it’s going to be great.
I’d love to talk more but we have to wrap things up. Before you go, do you have any more adventures planned for Libète and Jak?
Those two have been on my mind as of late! I’ve published two other short mysteries set prior to Because We Are that follow the two children, and each is a breezy little story that I think anyone who enjoys the full-length novel will also appreciate. They’re entitled The Bloodied Birds and The Kings of Nothing. I’ve also been diligently plotting a story arc that would carry them through two more novels, but we’ll see if those come to pass!
I haven’t read the shorts yet, but they are both on my Kindle. And I’m especially looking forward to more novels. Thanks for taking the time to be interviewed.
HeadshotDavid, thanks so much for this opportunity to share my story with your community here, and for your other support along the way. I’m glad Because We Are resonated with you and hope it might connect with others! If it does, I’d love for them to drop me a line at ted.oswald@becauseweare.com.
* * *
Ted’s email is above if you want to get in touch, and you can read more about the Haitian NGOs that benefit from the proceeds on the book’s website.
You can pick up a copy of his book at the following retailers – and you really should. Aside from all the proceeds going to charity, and aside from the book being amazing (you can read my five star review here), it’s currently on sale for 99c:
Amazon | Amazon UK | Apple | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Paperback
When chatting with Ted to set up this interview, I assisted him in putting together a marketing plan to hit all retailers as soon as the book exited KDP Select. With help from BookBub, the first day went very well, peaking at #338 in the overall Kindle Store and #122 on Barnes & Noble.
If you are considering holding back and purchasing when the book returns to $3.99 so that the various NGOs get more money – don’t. The book needs the sales now to keep momentum going before the next ad spot in a few days, so buying the book now will do much more good overall.
And if you want to assist further in getting the word out about this wonderful book and the amazing cause that is benefiting from its sales, please share this post using the buttons below. Happy reading!
QUOTED: "Wry humor adds levity to this story."
"Oswald's novel is a unique, lovely take on faith, understanding, forgiveness, and love."
1 of 2 8/13/18, 9:32 PM
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Print Marked Items Little Flower
Publishers Weekly.
265.16 (Apr. 16, 2018): p67+. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2018 PWxyz, LLC http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Little Flower
Ted Oswald. Dispatch Publishing, $9.99 trade paper (256p) ISBN 978-0-9886005-5-3
In Oswald's rollicking novel, set in Delhi, an elderly nun teams up with a prostitute to find the killer of a boy they both loved, albeit in very different ways. Meeta Chandralekha is escaping from her brothel with her client and true love, Ram Kumar, when Ram gets into a fight at the train station with an unknown man and is thrown under a train and killed. Sister Shanti, of India's Missionaries of Charity, who has known the troubled Ram since he was a small boy, decides to investigate after she learns of his death in the newspaper. When she meets Meeta, they reluctantly partner to find Ram's killer. What follows is a dizzying few days spent on the teeming streets of Delhi, where Shanti and Meeta collide with vicious thugs, drug dealers, and noble street kids, while following a trail that leads to a slightly unhinged Bollywood actress who holds a shocking secret. The story is told in a letter written to Pope Francis, requesting Shanti's canonization, by Sister Immaculata, whose gentle, wry humor adds levity to this story about a terrible crime and the blossoming of an unlikely partnership. Oswald's novel is a unique, lovely take on faith, understanding, forgiveness, and love. (BookLife)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Little Flower." Publishers Weekly, 16 Apr. 2018, p. 67+. Book Review Index Plus,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A536532688/GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS& xid=3aec579c. Accessed 13 Aug. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A536532688
2 of 2 8/13/18, 9:32 PM
QUOTED: "The spark for the story was a little girl. Shortly after the 2010 earthquake that reduced so much of Port-au-Prince to rubble, I worked as a law student intern in Cité Soleil, a slum on the outskirts of Haiti’s capitol. During my days there, a girl of ten—incredibly bright, mischievous, and sharp-tongued—would flit through our office. Though she’d never solved a murder, I wouldn’t put it past her! The thought of casting a character inspired by her as the lead in a mystery became irresistible, and Libète, my protagonist, was born."
Latest Books, Mysteries
Because We Are: A Novel of Haiti by Ted Oswald
July 31, 2014 by Mario Acevedo
Because We Are A Novel of Haiti by Ted OswaldBy Mario Acevedo
Ten-year-old orphan Libète has been hardened by the daily struggle to survive in Cité Soleil, Haiti’s most infamous slum. But when she and her best friend, Jak, discover a young mother and her baby brutally murdered in a nearby marsh, it’s unlike anything she’s encountered before. Though initially shocked, the adults of Cité Soleil move on quickly from the event; after all, death is commonplace in this community. Undaunted, Libète takes action with Jak in tow, plunging herself into a dangerous, far-reaching plot that will change her irrevocably and threaten everything she holds dear.
BECAUSE WE ARE is a profound and mesmerizing tale of a young girl’s search for justice in an unjust world, set against the vivid and tumultuous backdrop of modern-day Haiti.
What was the genesis for this novel? Why tell the story through the girl Libète?
The spark for the story was a little girl. Shortly after the 2010 earthquake that reduced so much of Port-au-Prince to rubble, I worked as a law student intern in Cité Soleil, a slum on the outskirts of Haiti’s capitol. During my days there, a girl of ten—incredibly bright, mischievous, and sharp-tongued—would flit through our office. Though she’d never solved a murder, I wouldn’t put it past her! The thought of casting a character inspired by her as the lead in a mystery became irresistible, and Libète, my protagonist, was born.
At times the story was very tragic and sad. At other times, it was deeply poignant. And there was humor as well. What was the challenge in modulating the mood of the narrative without getting too sappy, maudlin, or clichéd?
Haiti is a tragicomic place. As a novice writer, I think any success was due to respecting the complex array of human experience in a place like Cité Soleil. We have to be so very careful in portraying contexts like Haiti as we can rob others of their dignity by telling simple narratives peopled by stereotypes. Respect for my characters, and more importantly for the people I know in Cité Soleil, helped me strike the necessary balance in mood and tone.
Some scenes in the book can be overwhelming with their brutality and violence. As horrific as those scenes were, did you feel that you had to hold back?
I did pull back at times. Really, my story is about the survival of hope in the middle of pain and sorrow. Our world is a dark place, largely because of our capacity to hurt one another. When peace is contrasted with violence and hope with despair, we see the need for the former over the latter. While I felt the need to employ violence, I didn’t care to explore the darkest corners of my imagination.
You lived in Haiti. Besides what’s mentioned in your book, what else would you like to share about your experience there?
While my story portrays some of the poverty and injustices present in Haitian society, I have to underscore that Haiti is a remarkable place, full of beauty, art, culture and compassion. In fact, this is at the core of the story: even amid profound suffering, these things thrive.
I also still have much to learn. I’m glad to report I recently had the opportunity to return to Port-au-Prince along with my wife to work on advocacy matters. We’re excited to be back for the next several years and hope to grow the depth of our understanding of this place.
What was the biggest challenge in writing this book?
It was difficult writing as a cultural outsider. I don’t think I could have completed the story without the combination of hours spent in Cité Soleil, language-learning, lots of outside research, and gracious friends willing to help me root out cultural and factual blunders in the manuscript.
What was your experience with Thomas & Mercer?
Thomas & Mercer has been a gift. I had a splendid experience revising the book under their editorial care and I’m proud of our collaboration’s fruit.
Who are your favorite authors and why?
I appreciate authors who do the difficult work of exploring the rocky terrain of the human soul, and look to Graham Greene and Flannery O’Connor as guides. I also appreciate writers whose fiction accompanies activism. Alan Paton (author of CRY, THE BELOVED COUNTRY) embodies this for me, and Edwidge Danticat and Dave Eggers are more contemporary role models. I’ve lately been delighted by Alexander McCall Smith’s mysteries and enthralled by Khaled Hosseini’s visceral storytelling.
What’s up next in your writing career?
I’m working on two sequels to BECAUSE WE ARE, and I’m looking forward to letting readers’ continue accompanying Libète on her journey. My new job in Haiti will lead to a slower output, but being back on Haitian soil will mean a greater realism that I hope will reward readers’ patience and give my next books some of the richness of BECAUSE WE ARE.
*****
tedWhile a law student, Ted Oswald lived in Port-au-Prince and worked in Cité Soleil, where he became deeply invested in the community and met the feisty young girl who served as the inspiration for his character Libète. He currently works as a public interest lawyer in Philadelphia, where he lives with his wife, Katharine. BECAUSE WE ARE: A NOVEL OF HAITI is his first novel.
To learn more about Ted, please visit his website.
Mario Acevedo
Mario Acevedo is the author of the Felix Gomez detective-vampire series. His short fiction is included in numerous anthologies and in Modern Drunkard Magazine. Mario lives and writes in Denver, CO.
Visit Mario at: www.marioacevedo.com.