I love to give authors a podium and the freedom to share whatever they like. I found Vince’s Guest Post to be interesting and it got me thinking….
Guest Blog Post
Which two authors would I have dinner with?
Ernest Hemingway and Taylor Caldwell have been known for their inspiring and exceptional writing. So, what would it be like to have dinner with them?
Let the fantasy begin …
As we waited for our drinks, I leaned over to Ernest. “Put that cigar away,” I whispered, to avoid embarrassment.
“It’s Papa,” he replied in his usual charismatic tone. “I told you many times, call me Papa. And this is no ordinary cigar. It’s a Cuban puro.”
“I know what it is,” I said as my eyes followed the waft of smoke charging towards me like one of the bulls from his book, The Sun Also Rises. I moved my head to the side and added, “This is not El Floridity and it’s not 1952. It’s 2022 in Sotto Sotto, Toronto. You remember Toronto, don’t you?”
“Of course, I do,” Ernest said as he extinguished his cigar. “The Toronto Star. I started there as a freelancer and eventually worked as a foreign correspondent in Europe writing stories about post-WWI conditions.”
I looked over to Taylor. She wasn’t a bit annoyed. The curl of her lip suggested she rather enjoyed the exchange and would have also enjoyed a Cuban cigar.
Our server came with our drinks. “Two daquiris,” he said. Ernest smiled and tapped his finger on a space on the table in front of him. “Martini for you, madam. And Negroni for you, sir.” We toasted to friendship and writing and as the food and drinks came in plenty, so did the conversation.
“Congratulations,” Taylor said, raising her glass to me. “I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Final Crossing. Well done.”
“As did I,” Ernest said. I thanked them, smiled, and took a sip of my Negroni.
Then Taylor turned to Ernest. “Papa, you should have added more religious themes in your books.”
“You mean like your stories?”
“You know very well I have written on a broad range of subjects, not just stories related to real historical events or persons. I do not need to defend my work.”
Ernest smiled and raised his glass in tribute of her accomplishments. It was probably more in his appreciation of a woman who exemplified his own persona – strong-minded, adventurous, and passionate about her craft. The wise fisherman was no match for this marlin, at least not this time.
“And don’t forget,” I said. “While you published The Old Man and The Sea in 1952, for which you later won the Nobel Prize, Taylor had written The Devil’s Advocate, set in a dystopia where North America came under Communist rule.”
Ernest leaned back in his chair and took another sip of his drink. Then he began to talk about his time in Cuba and in Paris and in Spain. Taylor raised her hand. Ernest stopped and remained quiet. She then leaned forward towards him and said, “Don’t let the past steal your present.”
The place fell in deafening silence as if everyone had heard our conversation. I broke the stillness with my own curiosity about their work.
“Papa, did writing come easy for you?” He shifted in his seat and cleared his throat as if ready to respond in an interview with a seasoned journalist.
“Writing is something that you can never do as well as it can be done,” he said. “It is a perpetual challenge, and it is more difficult than anything else that I have ever done—so I do it. And it makes me happy when I do it well.”
Then I turned to Taylor. “You have always been outspoken which is reflected in your intricately plotted, suspenseful stories depicting family tensions. Much of this stemmed from your childhood. Would you agree?”
“To some extent,” she replied. “As you know, I emigrated to the U.S. with my parents and younger brother in 1907. Shortly after my father died and the family struggled. I think I tapped into those experiences and wrote them in my stories.”
“I believe you started to write at the age of eight and wrote your first novel when you were twelve.”
She smiled. Then, as if the memories surfaced, her smile faded. “My ill health prevented me from doing many things, except writing of course. I buried myself in writing and the world knew little about me. Many presumed I or rather the author, was a man. That was my first editor’s doing, giving me a pen name. When my identity was eventually made known there was even some public fuss over it.”
“Did that experience change how you thought about people?”
“The nature of human beings never changes. Political fads come and go; theories rise and fall; the scientific truth of today becomes the discarded error of tomorrow. Man’s ideas change, but not his inherent nature. That remains.”
My eyes darted towards Ernest who sat with his hand on his chin, and I could tell he learned something new about Taylor.
“OK, now please humour me,” I said. I reached into my pocket and pulled out three pens, one for each of us. I then took out a piece of paper, ripped it in three and distributed them. I had obviously planned for this moment.
I continued. “If we were stranded on an island and brought with us only one book, what would it be? Write it down, fold the paper and pass it to me.”
They were pensive at first. But then, in unison, they wrote down their answer and handed it to me. I also wrote mine. I unfolded each one and placed them on the table for us to see which book we would have had brought with us.
Taylor wrote, The Old Man and The Sea. Ernest wrote, The Devil’s Advocate. I wrote, The Final Crossing.
We laughed and laughed. We ate and drank. We savoured the evening until the place had emptied, except for three revelling authors.
And the fantasy ended.
What a fun post. I know I have read The Old Man and The Sea, but the others….I’ll be checking. I loved the post and you made it so enjoyable, Vince. Thank you very much.
The Final Crossing: A Tale of Self-Discovery and Adventure by Vince Santoro
GENRE: Historical Fiction
BLURB
In this tale of self-discovery and adventure,
we are connected with a history we’ve come to know as the cradle of
civilization.
Nenshi, an Egyptian house servant, raised in
nobility, is well-schooled, a master huntsman and hungers to be free. His
master agrees to grant his freedom but while the petition is set to be heard,
Nenshi’s indiscretion gets in the way. He is caught in a secret love affair
with a woman above his social status.
As punishment, he is exiled to labour in the Nubian
gold mines. His life turns upside down as he is thrust into a world for which
he had been ill prepared. He escapes from the mines and vows to return to
Thebes, but his attempts push him farther and farther away on a journey that
redefines him – a journey mired with cruelty, bloodshed, and the discovery of a
new deity.
In the end Nenshi learns his freedom has been
granted and must decide whether to return to his homeland or start a new life.
“I greatly enjoyed this well written story by
Vince Santoro. He takes us across the Ancient World
through the protagonist, Nenshi, an exiled Egyptian
servant who struggles with class structure, both around and within himself.
Santoro weaves a story of ideas – a sense of belonging, monotheism, and the
human soul – told through Nenshi’s rite of passage through to his final
crossing. The setting is visually evocative of “spirit of place” as
the novelist and travel writer Lawrence Durrell called it. It’s a story worth
reading.” – Terry Stanfill
Award winning historical fiction author of The Gift
from Fortuny, Realms of Gold, The Blood Remembers and other works.
“Vince Santoro is a gifted storyteller. I
found The Final Crossing difficult to put down because it is
well written. As an historian and author of
non-fiction books, I am impressed with the amount of research that Santoro has
done to prepare this story of adventure and romance set in the ancient Middle
East. The customs, the beliefs and even the character names are all authentic
to that region and era. With so many plot twists and turns, Santoro will keep
you guessing about what might happen next to the protagonist until the very
end!” – John Charles Corrigan
Author of The Red Knight and “Love
Always”
EXCERPT
Twilight was fast approaching, and they returned to the trail. From a distance they saw an abundance of trees and vegetation that sprung from the hard soil. Moments later, they heard rushing water. A twisting river murmured. It called out and invited them to consume its wealth. Nenshi and Aziza went to explore it.
Aziza stopped and kneeled to examine small flowers in bloom. On the river’s edge Nenshi bent over and splashed water on his face. He cupped his hands and drank its cool refreshing offering. Rocks jutted out from the shallow water. He heard footsteps and threw a glance behind him. Aziza, ran towards him, as free as the wind blew, eager to jump into the river. Nenshi screamed from the top of his lungs to warn her.
“Aziza … Aziza … be careful, the water is shallow! There are rocks!”
Her excitement muffled his warning. Nenshi then stood, flapped his arms to get her attention. She pushed her legs hard against the water to run faster until it was just deep enough to jump in.
“Aziza …. Aziza … stop …” Nenshi cried. Aziza took another step but this time slipped and almost fell. She tried to regain balance and continued moving forward. Nenshi gasped hoping she realized the danger and would stop. But she didn’t and it was too late. She slipped again, fell and hit a rock. Nenshi immediately ran to her, stepping and slipping on rocks that almost caused him to lose balance. Babak who had heard Nenshi’s cries dashed to the river. Nenshi crouched over the wet and motionless body.
“Help me get her out,” Nenshi cried out as he lifted her, propped her head and shoulders in his arms. Blood, washed by the water, dripped from her head.
AUTHOR Bio and Links
Vince is an Italian-born Canadian who grew up in Toronto, Canada, and now lives in Pickering, a suburb of Toronto.
In his youth, education and sports became a priority. A private boys’ school, St. Michael’s College in Toronto, provided the opportunity for both. He graduated from York University, Toronto, with a degree in history and a minor in behavioural science.
Vince was always up for new challenges. After completing his studies, he set his eyes on Europe and played professional basketball in Italy. When he returned home, he shifted gears and worked in the aerospace industry in several capacities. The most rewarding was managing internal communications for a large aircraft manufacturer. It was during this time he decided to hone his writing skills by studying journalism at Ryerson University, Toronto, and he had several articles published.
His career in communications along with studies in history and journalism prepared him to take on his next challenge: to write a book. His debut novel, The Final Crossing, has been a labour of love, one he worked on for many years. It reflects life experiences, woven into a story that inspires and entertains, and perhaps even show the world in a different way.
CONNECT WITH VINCE SANTORO
- WEBSITE – Vince Santoro l Novel Writer (vsantoro.ca)
- FACEBOOK – Vince Santoro | Facebook
- INSTAGRAM – Vince Santoro (@vsantoro14) • Instagram photos and videos
- http://www.instagram.com/ vsantoro14
- TWITTER – Vince Santoro (@vsantoro14) / Twitter
- GOODREADS – Vince Santoro (Author of The Final Crossing) | Goodreads
- PURCHASE LINKS – The Final Crossing
- AMAZON.COM – https://amzn.to/3vL3iwQ
- AMAZON.CA – https://amazon.ca/dp/0228871840
- AMAZON KINDLE – https://amazon.com/dp/B09WJKB96S
- INDIGO CHAPTERS – https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/final-crossing-a-tale-of/9780228871842-item.html
- BARNES & NOBLE – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-final-crossing-vince-santoro/1141328310
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