A Blue Million Books' interview with Joel Savage

Featured Author: Joel Savage

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Joel Savage, author of Overseas Chronicle-The Rome and Amsterdam Experience, and he's here today with Virtualbookworm Publishing to talk about the book and writing in general.

About the book:

The Roman Catholic priests continuously abused the young boys they had provided accommodation for, and in Amsterdam, the liberal laws on drugs have destroyed a lot of people that there are walking dead on the streets.

In Amsterdam, the police have successfully impounded hundreds of kilos of drugs that are brought into the country through the airport Schiphol, yet marijuana and other harmful drugs find their way into the coffee shops for customers. Where do those drugs come from? Who is controlling it? The government, the army, the police, or the Queen?


Interview with Joel Savage

Joel, how long have you been writing, and how did you start?

I have been writing since I was a teenager. I grew up in an environment where I witnessed the experiences of those dying in desperation, and it deepened my understanding and knowledge to start writing books inspired by true events.

What do you like best about writing? 

Writing has been my passion. It may be a hereditary thing since my father was a journalist and writer. 

What’s your least favorite thing?

I don’t have any least favorite thing, but I feel restless when a particular book I’m working on is left uncompleted.

Do you have another job outside of writing?

Yes, when I am not behind my desk, I work as a cleaner or sometimes as a forklift driver to support my family.

How did you create the plot for this book?

I was aware of the subject I wanted to write about, and since it falls in the genre of non-fiction, I made the book very interesting to read, letting the reader feel that he or she is witnessing firsthand.

Do you outline, write by the seat of your pants, or let your characters tell you what to write?

Having the story in mind, I just plan the outline, and the story continues as the book is inspired by true events.

Did you have any say in your cover art? 

I love being creative and adventurous. I, therefore, design the cover illustration of every book I have written.

What books have you read more than once or want to read again?

The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale

What’s your favorite line from a book?

There was advice to a certain lady to refrain from thinking to prevent wrinkles from forming on her forehead.

Tell us a book you’re an evangelist for.

The Devil that Danced on the Water by Aminatta Forna.

What do you do to market your book?

I write little feature articles on my blog relating to my books before they are published.

Joel, tell us about your favorite scene in the book.

When I was invited by the police in Amsterdam for my documents, I went without any idea that I was going to be arrested and thrown behind bars. The police told me, “We knew that woman more than you; she takes money from foreigners under the pretext of helping them.” I couldn’t say anything.

What song would you pick to go with your book?

I don’t have any song that suits my case, but I remember that time, the African-American musician, R Kelly’s lyrics, “I believe I can fly” supported me spiritually through faith to survive.

Who are your favorite authors?
Norman Vincent Peale, Aminatta Forna, Jeffrey Archer, and Ryszard Kapuscinski.

What are your favorite books as a child, as a teenager, and as an adult?

Books inspired by true events.

Which author would you most like to invite to dinner, and what would you fix him? 


Harrison Ford. I will first ask him what he likes best.

Do you have a routine for writing? Do you work better at night, in the afternoon, or in the morning?

I write when time is available. It can be morning, evening, or even at midnight.

Where and when do you prefer to do your writing?

At home at night.

Do you ever get writer’s block? What do you do when it happens?

At the moment, I haven’t experienced any writer’s block because I’m still working on other scripts.

What’s one of your favorite quotes?

“Whatever happens to me benefits me, because it educates me morally and spiritually.”

What three books have you read recently and would recommend?

Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less, by Jeffrey Archer; My Laugh Comes Last, by James Hadley Chase; and Cry My Beloved Country, by Alan Paton.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?
Watch a favorite program on television.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? Australia

If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go? 



United States of America

What are you working on now?

My new script, The Passion of Reggae and African Music.

RYSZARD KAPUSCINSKI's SHADOW OF THE SUN (My African Life)

Ryszard Kapuscinski, the Polish writer and journalist



As a foreign correspondent for PAP, the Polish News Agency, until 1981, Africa was like a second home to Ryszard Kapuscinski. 


He was an eyewitness to revolutions, coups, and civil wars in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Experience is the best teacher, they say. His life experience in Africa has given him one of the finest books ever written by a white journalist.

The shadow of the Sun (My African Life) covers Kapuscinski's experience in Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, etc, making the book brilliant and interesting for anyone interested in great humanitarian writing. 

The book was actually published first in Polish before translation. He writes, "I lived in Africa for several years. I first went there in 1957. Then over the next forty years, I returned whenever the opportunity arose."

"I travelled extensively, avoiding official routes, palaces, important personages, and high-level politics. Instead, I opted to hitch rides on passing trucks, wander with nomads through the desert, and be the guest of peasants of the tropical savannah. Their life is endless toil, a torment they endure with astonishing patience and good humour."

On his visit to Accra-Ghana, Kapuscinski writes, "The street is a road delineated on both sides by an open sewer. There are no sidewalks. Cars mingle with crowds. Everything moves in concert: pedestrians, automobiles, bicycles, cars, cows, and goats. 

On the other side of the sewer, along with the entire length of the street, domestic scenes unfold. Women pounding manioc, baking taro bulbs over the coals, cooking dishes of one sort or another, hawking chewing gum, crackers, and aspirin, and washing and drying laundry."

The description of activities in Accra by Kapuscinski is actually Europe's image of Africa. More is hunger, disease, and skeletal children. However, he failed to ask or write the reason Ghana or Africa in general has been in such an appalling state for ages. 

Before the colonial masters scrambled over Africa, I might say Ghana was under development. Then, many years after European occupation, they left the countries they had occupied after independence, leaving the countries in the same way.

In this case, why did they go to Africa at all? Is it right or wrong when one says they were only interested in the continent's rich mineral resources? To loot but nothing else. They looted the continent to build Europe, and they left the countries in a deplorable state. 

Kapuscinski should have known better as a journalist. Was he expecting Ghana to be like a modern European country when, for a very long time, the country has suffered from the criminal activities of colonial rule?

The British and the Dutch were both in Ghana before the country attained its independence in 1957. The Ghanaians also moved in concert with cars, bicycles, cows, and goats. 

Even though Kapuscinski's book is an interesting book about Africa, he should have commented deeply on the mistakes and crimes the Europeans committed in Africa during the colonial era.

The Shadow Of The Sun is available at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Sun-Ryszard-Kapuscinski/dp/0679779078/