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Author Spotlight
May 2009 --- Gene Dark
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When 19-year-old Gene Dark returned from Vietnam, he tried to forget the war. But he never could. For years, Dark thought about what he endured everyday. He finally realized that unless he wrote a book about his experiences, he'd continue to live with the deep-seated emotions of the time he spent in battle. This led him to publish The Brutality of War. Initially self published through iUniverse, The Brutality of War was recently acquired by Pelican Publishing Company. Dark discusses his inspiration for writing his book and his publishing journey.
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“Writing a book is intense and demanding,” said Dark. “An author must be dedicated and hard-working.”
When he finally finished his book, Dark took it to traditional publishers and was met with only disappointment. “You often pour your heart out onto the pages only to be rejected for your effort,” Dark said. “No one wanted to publish my book, so I did it myself.”
Dark eventually decided to publish his book with iUniverse. The Brutality of War hit bookshelves in November 2007. Although it was not published through a traditional publisher, as he first hoped, Dark was impressed by the quality of his self-published book and the simplicity of the process. “The book was well done,” Dark said, “and everyone that I dealt with was honest, hard working, prompt, and did what they said they would do.”
The Brutality of War turned into a hit with readers. It had become so successful that the publicist he secured through the iUniverse Advance Publicity service decided to send a copy of the book, along with copies of the book reviews to Pelican Publishing Company, a traditional publisher located in Gretna, La., who enjoyed the book and decided to pick it up. In talking about his recent successes, Dark reflected on his publishing journey, “iUniverse is the reason I was picked up by Pelican Publishing.”
The book will be published under the same title at Pelican Publishing Company during the second half of 2009.
The author, who is also a chief operations officer for a master planned community in Lake Charles, La., has already started working on his next book. “If you believe in your story pursue the dream,” Dark says. He gives aspiring authors advice once said by Winston Churchill. “Never, never, never, never give up.”
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