Yanatha Desouvre is a techie before anything else. His love of technology led him to publishing. To Whom Much is Given, his latest novel, tries to make sense of Haitian history. Besides his literary endeavors, the author is also working on a personal project—that of bringing the work of the late guitarist Daniel Coulanges to a wider audience. You can contribute to his Kickstarter project here.
Kreyolicious: What made you write this book?
That’s a great question. There are two reasons why I wrote this novel. First, after completing my most recent creative book Savor the Moments: Inspired by True Stories, my biggest supporters challenged me to write a novel based off the character Grayson Goodman. I was scared, nervous, and excited all at the same time but I did it. Second, I was inspired by a tragic event in my family. My aunt, and cousin in Haiti were involved in a very violent incident back in the [1990s]. In the novel, a very similar life changing event takes place in Grayson Goodman’s life, the leading character of the Goodman Chronicles. Writing this novel has been my free therapy to process through that pain. To Whom Much is Given also addresses the powerful global impact the Haitian Revolution had and continues to have in North America, South America. and beyond. In this modern time in America, I’ve not come across anything in the world of literary fiction that talks about the revolution that rocked the world. Unapologetically, the pride of my Haitian culture is embedded throughout the To Whom Much is Given novel. Readers of To Whom Much is Given have described it as, “James Bond meets Idris Elba’s Luther mixed with Mission Impossible sprinkled with a dash of Haitian hot sauce.”
Kreyolicious: You’ve written a book before. What did you learn the last time that helped you this time around?
I’ve been fortunate to write and publish eight previous books my latest one An Essential Guide to Windows 10 has been well-received all over the world, from England to as far as Australia. From the books I’ve written, I’ve learned from that creating and sticking to deadlines are important. It gave me a sense of thrill and discipline that I was missing before in the previous books that I’ve written. Also, there is tons of marketing and promotion you must do when you independently publish a book. Since Big Sister, Little Sister I’ve had trailers for all of my books.
Kreyolicious: For those of us who are not familiar with the production process involved in creating a book…would you mind walking us through it?
The process is a labor of love, and I don’t mind walking you through this journey. It all starts with you, the writer. First, you must write what you know about, your experiences etc. Next organize your manuscript add table of contents, bio etc. Then, reach out to beta readers—people who can give you early feedback on your work. Remember to embrace constructive criticism, it will make you a better writer. After the feedback, get an editor. Next, there are several print on demand companies to choose from to publish or print your work from Createspace, LuLu and many more. However If your readers have any questions feel free to contact me at bookyanatha@gmail.com and I’ll be more than happy to guide them through the final crucial steps to publish their book.
Kreyolicious: What’s the most rewarding thing about being an author?
The most rewarding aspect of being an author for me has been to encourage and guide others who want to write and share their story. I am excited to be working with Karen Harris who’s writing a book titled For They Know Not, a book about forgiveness and self-love. Then there is Ray Dominguez’s Stories of a Man his coming-of-age story about a young man who is at major turning point in life during his senior year of high school. Next Steiman Desouvre’s Sole Songs: The Essentials, whose poems touch on the essences of life. Finally, Florence Belland, Ph.D who’s interweaving narrative Wailing…Haiti (Ayiti) Anmwei-eee, defines what it means to be Haitian while signifying the intertextual contours of gender and cultural identity.
Kreyolicious: What’s next for you?
This August marks an exciting milestone for me. It’s been 10 years since I published my first book Walk Through this Journey: Volume One back in August 2006. Since [then], I’ve written nine manuscripts and I release nine book—mostly poetry. To celebrate this milestone, I will release my tenth book Proud to Be, the follow-up to the #1 Amazon best-selling children’s book Big Sister, Little Sister—available in French, Spanish and Haitian-Creole. For a limited time, I will also release a special edition of To Whom Much is Given: A Grayson Goodman Novel, Goodman Chronicles, Book One that will include a preview of Revelation: Much is Required – Goodman Chronicles, Book Two. Autographed copies will only be available via my website along with a free prize. Kreyolicious, you as well as your readers and followers are cordially invited to celebrate this decade of tenacity, drive, ambition and service in writing that I hope inspires others.
I’ll conclude with this: In the words of the Broadway hit musical Hamilton via Lin-Manuel Miranda and the talented cast, “I’m just like my country I’m young scrappy and hungry. And as long as I’m breathing, I’m not throwing away my shot. There’s a million things I haven’t done. Just you wait, just you wait…”
