DreamMiners Publishing: Tell us a little about yourself and your background (education, family, etc).
A.J. Scott: Really, I believe my life is summed up in the author's bio. I'm from southern California. I went to North High School, but ended up graduating from Lincoln High School, and since then I've went on to earn multiple degrees from various communities colleges. I am also the second youngest of seven siblings. As for work, I'm the supervising law clerk at FCI Victorville, and I'm a very accomplished paralegal. In my spare time, I volunteer as a suicide companion for those who suffer from the pressures of life and the trials of incarceration.
DreamMiners Publishing: What
kind of writing do you do?
A.J. Scott: I love all kinds of writing, from poetry to short stories and novels. I've even started a screen play, but I have a ways to go with that project. I've ghost written for a couple of associates which short stories were featured in an anthology published by the California Writer's Club. You can check out one of my pieces that is featured on the back cover of "Desert Gold."
DreamMiners Publishing: When
did writing become something you wanted to throw yourself into?
A.J. Scott: About ten years ago I got up the nerve to start putting my thoughts on paper in novel and short story form. But poetry (or what I called poetry, LOL) has been with me since I was in high school.
DreamMiners Publishing: When
did you feel confident enough in your writing to unveil it to the public?
A.J. Scott: Well, "confident"...I don't think that's the right word. I still get butterflies when people read my material. It's like holding your breath until you get the thumbs up.
DreamMiners Publishing: What
inspired you to write "The Gift That Keeps On Givin"?
A.J. Scott: I was reared in a two bedroom house with seven siblings. My father died from a self inflicted bullet wound when I was in the kindergarten, and my mother was left to rear seven children. I thought being poor was unique to my family until I became older and traveled the United States. At that time, I realized that the social issues that I endured as a child plagued every poor or lower class community. These issues are not unique, but are issues that needs addressing. The Gift That Keeps on Givin' is my way of trying to shed some light not only on how many people live in poverty physically, but mentally, intellectually, and emotionally as well.
DreamMiners Publishing: Give
us an insight into your main character, Mr. Green. What does he do that is
special?
A.J. Scott: Growing up, there was a preacher/school teacher in our community who always walked throughout our neighborhood praying when he wasn't at work. A lot of times he intervened when trouble arose, or the police showed up. He didn't owe anyone anything. He had a family, but he still cared enough to get out of bed in the middle of the night and walk around the block to make sure everything was peaceful. What he did that was special (because you don't see it everyday) is he cared about humanity regardless of our physical condition. He cared about people just like Mr. Green.
DreamMiners Publishing: Your
book touches upon many social issues that are prevalent today, including
poverty. Do you see a connection between
religion and poverty?
A.J. Scott: What happens if you drain all the nutrients from the land and not replenish the earth? I believe that we are all caretakers of our communities. And those who have established businesses or institutions in the community should be held to a higher standard of accountability. So to answer your question, religion and poverty has always had a connection. If you look across the nation, the most deprived countries and people in the world are the ones who are the most religious. And in the same breath, the most prosperous people or countries are less religious. Why is that? I believe history tells us that religion and poverty has always run hand and hand because at our lowest state, we tend to cling onto hope. (WIN-Gallup International 2012, Religion and Atheism).
I also believe that economical institution are fundamental to all societies because usually they are the source of social change. Religion and other institutions are shaped by economic and political institutions; they are something like a superstructure that simply reflects the values of those institutions - market firms, the government, and so on. So if the function of religion is to instill in the masses the values that are conducive of the dominate class, shouldn't religious leaders always be involved in the communities health, stability, and well being?
DreamMiners Publishing: What
was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?
A.J. Scott: Research. Due to the limitations on my life, I find it very difficult to gather statistics background and information when writing.
DreamMiners Publishing: Do
you draw from personal experience while writing?
A.J. Scott: Yes, all the time.
DreamMiners Publishing: Who
are some of your literary and poetic influences?
A.J. Scott: I'm more of a nonfiction reader. So I enjoy autobiographies. But the last book I've read was called "Just Mercy," by Bryan Stevenson. Exceptional book. As for poetry...Maya Angelou is one of my favorites.
DreamMiners Publishing: Do
you have any current works in progress or ready for publication?
A.J. Scott: Yes I do. I have five manuscripts that are complete, and I am presently working on two more. I also have a book of poetry I am formulating that my daughter and I wrote together. She's an excellent poet as well.
DreamMiners Publishing: What
advice would you give aspiring writers and authors?
A.J. Scott: Regardless of time restraints, environmental conditions, or the personal pressures that comes with life, always make time for your craft. Writing may be the only freedom you will ever experience.
DreamMiners Publishing: Is "The Gift" a symbolic work of literature? Do you see Mr. Green and Pastor Warrick as representative
of the difference between religion and
spirituality?
A.J. Scott: Symbolic...I would rather say "The Gift" is a harsh reality that's experienced by millions of people in economically deprived communities. Poverty, homelessness, the mentally disabled or disadvantaged, brokenness, drug and alcohol addiction, mass incarceration, joblessness, under-education, abuse, and being reared in a single parent home are just the untold stories of millions of people. They are social issues that surpass color lines, ethnicity, and touches the heart of humanity.
I believe religion is something that is taught. Spirituality is what we are born with: a spirit. So if "love" is the first fruit of the spirit, it is not taught. They don't teach us about love in school, on street corners, or in daily relationships because it is an emotion that's unexplained. It'll make you do things that a normal person wouldn't normally do. And we, as humans, sometimes identify with things like emotions or body language when it's visual or spoken. Pastor Warrick is not different. Mr. Green's character is who Pastor Warrick will immaculate as he matures through life and service.
DreamMiners Publishing: In your book, you discuss the Fair Sentencing Act, which
reduces the disparity between the amount of crack cocaine and power cocaine
needed to trigger certain criminal penalties.
Can you discuss how this act is relevant to the story, and perhaps in your
own life?
A.J. Scott: In the "80's" when the crack epidemic spread throughout African-American and lower class communities, hundreds of thousands of men were incarcerated with draconian sentences. In 1988, a now friend of mine by the name of Richard Winrow was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for a nonviolent drug offense. An offense in which the drug amounts were less than the contents of a 100 Sweet & Low packets. Twenty seven years later, he is still incarcerated. Anthony Kizzee, Peter Burkins, Ralph Thompson, Michael Raven, and hundreds of other individuals, who could not afford a paid attorney, and that was considered indigent by the court, received life sentences behind small amounts of crack cocaine. But, because President Obama pushed for and signed into law the Fair Sentencing Act (FSA), which reduces the penalty and drug ratio for crack to powder cocaine offense from 100:1 to 18:1, I've been able to advocate for some of these individuals to receive sentence reductions. But some (over 8,000 individuals who have mandatory minimum sentences) still haven't received the benefit of the FSA which Congress and the U.S. Sentencing Commission declared the old law before the FSA racially bias and unconstitutionally enacted.
Mr. Green lost his son to an unmerciful system that has had its lingering affects in impoverished communities for 30 years. So to acknowledge an act of compassion, The Fair Sentencing Act was more than appropriate in this story, because I believe it healed some of our social issues by giving incarcerated fathers and mothers another chance to repair their broken families. It also sheds light on my situation as well. When Congress make their final vote on the "Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act (S.2123)," (which should be within the next few months), it will not only make the FSA retroactive to people with mandatory minimum sentences, but it cracks the door for my release from imprisonment as well.
Thanks for this opportunity.
Click here to order your copy of A.J. Scott's first novel, "The Gift That Keeps On Givin'" today!
