David A. Jacinto

I’m often asked how I became a writer and where the inspiration for my first novel came from. Like most boys growing up on the wrong side of the tracks, I was never one to allow schoolwork get in the way of my education -- how to make jumpin' ramps for my bike, fishin' rafts for the creek, or playin’ hooky to go down to the beach when the surf is good. I tried my best to follow the admonition of Mark Twain, “Never put off until tomorrow, what you can do the day after tomorrow.” I made it my hard and fast rule, to never take my schoolbooks home from Bell Avenue Elementary. In my mind, procrastination of my homework to do what was really important ... was worth it. You'd be surprised how much stimulation of the creative mind there is in the fertile ground of playin’ hooky with other disobedient boys. Oh, eventually, I did buckle down and do what society demands. I got a college education and dove into the corporate world for financial success. But always, in the back of my mind, my goal was to build a place somewhere on a quiet, secluded beach with plenty of surf. And time to uncover and explore the whim of inspiration in my creative soul. Eventually, I did find that deserted beach and built my santuary from the world, entirely off-the-grid, because life is not a dress rehearsal. The best of it is here and then it’s gone. Frequently, I retire from civilization for days to surf and write; not seeing another soul along this deserted stretch of beach pounding with surf. With saltwater from my morning surf still in my ears, I often sit basking in the warmth of a southerly breeze, listening to Bocelli, the inspiring sounds of crashing waves ... and just write. Drawing on inspiration from my unrepentant youth, my family, a lifetime of experiences, and of course, Elon Musk’s satellite internet, my thoughts are transported to another time and place. Unconsciously or maybe consciously, millions of outside sources influence the creative part of my mind. Ideas stollen from others make my stories possible. I feel a sense of pride in the accomplishment of cobbling together the ideas of thousands of others who have gone before; superstitiously imagining this discoloration of the story's origins is entirely my creative masterpiece. I suppose my pride in the creation of an original work like Out of the Darkness, is largely misplaced, unwarranted. Nevertheless, I would not trade away the insatiable compulsion of writing a thought provoking novel like Out of the Darkness. It has been a fulfilling, faith-building experience like no other.