Today, fellow author Tom Starita is stopping by to talk
about his latest book!
Hello! Thanks for having me.
My pleasure! Let me ask a few questions since
you're here...
All right.
Ripped
straight from my Amazon page:
Growth and Change Are Highly Overrated is a classic coming-of-age story that takes a unique and
comic look at what we all fear— having to grow up and abandon our dreams.
For a charismatic man like Lucas James, life is a breeze because everyone else provides the wind. This man-child front man for a mediocre cover band has been mooching off of his fiancée Jackie for years until she finally decides she's had enough. Faced with the reality of having no income to support his carefree lifestyle, Lucas James abandons his principles and gets a job working in the stockroom at “That Store.” How does he cope with this newfound sense of responsibility?
He casually steals...
In a life spent bucking authority how will Lucas James deal with his manager, 'Victor the Dictator'? How long can he survive Ralph, a starry-eyed coworker who desires nothing more than to be best friends? Will Lori, a twenty-something cashier, be like everyone else and fall for his charms? Will he ever find a place to live? And is “growing up” just another way of saying “selling out?”
With this hilarious and engaging novel, author Tom Starita perfectly captures a character we have all met and perhaps some of us know all too well.
For a charismatic man like Lucas James, life is a breeze because everyone else provides the wind. This man-child front man for a mediocre cover band has been mooching off of his fiancée Jackie for years until she finally decides she's had enough. Faced with the reality of having no income to support his carefree lifestyle, Lucas James abandons his principles and gets a job working in the stockroom at “That Store.” How does he cope with this newfound sense of responsibility?
He casually steals...
In a life spent bucking authority how will Lucas James deal with his manager, 'Victor the Dictator'? How long can he survive Ralph, a starry-eyed coworker who desires nothing more than to be best friends? Will Lori, a twenty-something cashier, be like everyone else and fall for his charms? Will he ever find a place to live? And is “growing up” just another way of saying “selling out?”
With this hilarious and engaging novel, author Tom Starita perfectly captures a character we have all met and perhaps some of us know all too well.
----
My
book was published on December 19th, 2016 and is exclusive to Amazon Kindle. Of course, if you don’t own a Kindle, you can always download the app for free and then read my book on your phone, tablet or any other
device.
Sounds fascinating!
Congrats on your recent release! :)
So, what inspired you to write this book? How did you get into writing humorous fiction?
We’re going to go way back to the weekend before Valentine’s Day in 2013. It was the lowest point of my entire life. I was alone and I had the flu. Not just the flu; like the worst flu in the history of modern medicine. Because I was alone I had no one to take care of me, or go food shopping. When I finally awoke from a three-day coma late Friday night, I was starving. I looked outside my bedroom window and saw eight inches of snow. No big deal. I was in no condition to drive or dig my car out. I’d order takeout. Except every restaurant blamed the snow or the late time for their inability to deliver.
Okay, okay, it’s not the end of the world. I’m not the best of cooks and I’m not in the mood to cook but I was starving, so I shuffled off to my kitchen. That’s where I remembered I hadn’t gone food shopping in over a week and thus had nothing to eat.
At that moment, I realized I had hit rock bottom. I also realized that this would be a great way to start a book so I ran to my computer and started typing and immediately, I met my main character, Lucas James.
I’ve been writing all my life. Journals (never to be opened for fear of death by
embarrassment), blogs, MySpace posts, LiveJournal entries, Facebook notes,
guest appearances on New York Mets blogs, I’ve done it all. Back in 2007, I was
ignorant enough to think I could actually write a book and somehow birthed
Two Ways to Sunday. To me, writing is as normal as eating.
Oh, I hear ya! It's not like we can turn off the creative faucet when it starts running.
Tell us...what, do you feel, sets your book apart from other books in the genre?
It’s funny but has heart. It’s sarcastic, with somewhat of a conscience. There’s a message and the message is no message at all. It’s the kind of book you can read casually over the course of many nights, or plow through it when you’re trapped in a blizzard.
Will this book win the Nobel Prize? No. Can a book win the Nobel Prize? Absolutely not.
(Laughs.)
All right.
Please give us a teaser or two of the book if you can.
Well, I'm definitely interested to find out more! ;)
I
have ideas, but right now I’m concentrating on a bet I’ve made with myself. I
randomly decided to write a story a day on Twitter. I’m calling them Twitter
Tales. They are just random ideas in my head that come out over a rapid series
of about 15 tweets. Because it’s Twitter, it’s raw. Meaning I’m just typing away
without planning anything out, so you’re going to get typos and wonder where the
hell I’m going with the story. But in the end I always stick the landing. Or
not. Depends on how you view life.
Wow! That's impressive!
I've always had trouble with short-short fiction, so I certainly applaud you!
Thanks so much for
stopping by to tell us about Growth and Change Are Highly Overrated, Tom!
Thank you for having me here!
Of course!
Here is the blurb.
Growth and Change Are Highly Overrated is a classic coming-of-age story that takes a unique and comic look at what we all fear— having to grow up and abandon our dreams.
For a charismatic man like Lucas James, life is a breeze because everyone else provides the wind. This man-child front man for a mediocre cover band has been mooching off of his fiancée Jackie for years until she finally decides she's had enough. Faced with the reality of having no income to support his carefree lifestyle, Lucas James abandons his principles and gets a job working in the stockroom at, “That Store.” How does he cope with this new found sense of responsibility?
He casually steals...
In a life spent bucking authority how will Lucas James deal with his manager, 'Victor the Dictator'? How long can he survive Ralph, a starry-eyed coworker who desires nothing more than to be best friends? Will Lori, a twenty-something cashier, be like everyone else and fall for his charms? Will he ever find a place to live? And is “growing up” just another way of saying “selling out?”
With this hilarious and engaging novel, author Tom Starita perfectly captures a character we have all met and perhaps some of us know all too well.
Purchase Links:
About the Author:
Like Brooklyn, Starita’s resumé is diverse ranging
from teaching religion, Sales, working for the Hurricane Sandy Relief Fund, and
now helping foreign exchange students find homes in America. “The common thread
among all my jobs is having personal experiences with a large cross section of
America. The rationale behind people’s decisions has always fascinated me, and
writing allows me to carry that to the most extreme level.”
Starita has made an impact on everyone he encounters. When asked for her
thoughts about him, Oprah Winfrey said, "Who?" Tom Hanks refused to
respond to an email asking for a quote, and former Mets great Mookie Wilson once
waved to him from a passing taxi.
Originally from Staten Island, NY, Starita has now found a home in the beautiful
beach community of Stratford, Connecticut where he remains a loyal fan of the
New York Mets.
Starita has made an impact on everyone he encounters. When asked for her thoughts about him, Oprah Winfrey said, "Who?" Tom Hanks refused to respond to an email asking for a quote, and former Mets great Mookie Wilson once waved to him from a passing taxi.
Originally from Staten Island, NY, Starita has now found a home in the beautiful beach community of Stratford, Connecticut where he remains a loyal fan of the New York Mets.
Author Links:
Website: https://goppygots.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TomStarita
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Tom-Starita/e/B00AONTVIK/
Tom's Books:
Tom's Books:
This book sounds fun! Great interview :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by, Shannon!
DeleteThank you Marie for both the opportunity and the kind words. I had a blast doing this!
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure, Tom! Hope to have you back in the future! :)
DeleteOh, that was a fun interview! The book sounds hilariously honest and insightful, a reflection of human nature. The cover for Two Ways to Sunday is lovely and luminous.
ReplyDeletePinned & shared the post and followed Tom on social media.