Balthazar Rodrigue Nzomono-Balenda

This interview, with a very gifted poet called Balthazar Rodrigue Nzomono-Balenda is amazing, and I hope you enjoy the experience of meeting him and knowing his work....

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Balthazar Rodrigue Nzomono-Balenda ( August 29, 1981), known as Rodrigue or Balthazar is a French - born Danish author and he is originally from the Republic of the Congo. Balthazar was born in Oullins, which is a suburb in Lyon, in France and his parents were diplomats in South Africa, before he and his family moved to Denmark. His parents, André & Rose Nzomono-Balenda were diplomats under the mandate of the former Congolese president, Pascal Lissouba. In 1997,there was civil war in the Congo As presidential elections scheduled for July 1997 approached, tensions between the Lissouba and Sassou camps mounted. On June 5, President Lissouba's government forces surrounded Sassou's compound in Brazzaville and Sassou ordered members of his private militia (known as "Cobras") to resist. Thus began a four-month conflict that destroyed or damaged much of Brazzaville and caused tens of thousands of civilian deaths.

Balthazar has written 2 books, “The Depth of My Soul” & “The Struggle of Power & The Fight for Survival”. He is a multimedia designer and a student at the Nordic Multimedia Academy ( NOMA). Balthazar identifies himself as a French – born Congolese because he is more connected with the Congo and France than Denmark. He speaks French, English, Lingala, Norwegian, Danish, partially German, Dutch and Afrikaans. Balthazar learns Chinese and Japanese in his spare time, he writes poems, he paints, he goes out and enjoys himself. Balthazar is also a member of the International Society of Poets, which runs poetry.com and he sometimes publishes poems at poetry.com. There will be more books from him this year.

You can visit his website at http://www.ganymedeweb.com/

ABOUT THE BOOK:

It is a book of poetry and in the book; I focus on injustices such as wars, corruption, war crimes, religious fundamentalism, child abuse, other types of abuse, torture, dictatorship, relationship problems etc. When I wrote this book, I was also inspired by the news I watch on CNN and other media. I have learned lots of things from CNN and I am so grateful to them for so many things. The goal of this book is to share my approach with my readers about the problems we face in this world and also to hear from them.

Change for our societies

Whether we like it or not these problems are real and I believe that everyone of us can make a change in our societies. Time after time, our leaders promise that those who stand behind war crimes will face justice, but when they are warned about the problems, they do not listen. I do wander if the national interests come above reaching out to people who are in pain and those who have been victims of torture and oppression.

Abuse

In the book, I also talk about child abuse because I was a victim of many types of abuse, when I was a young kid and I have not still overcome that pain. I have gone through reaction and insults and I thought religion was the answer to overcome such a horrible experience, but I was wrong. I was raised a Christian and I was a Christian myself and did what Christians do, but I realized that the bible is self contradicted and phony. And I realized that there was never a god who could save me. I can save myself and be a fighter for my life. The message, which I want to send to my readers, is that abusers are cowards and their goal is to find someone whom they can isolate and blame for their problems. To be honest with my readers, my abusive past is the root of my atheism and my hostility toward religion. I was also a victim of psychological abuse and the only I deal with it is by being a hard working person.

Freedom and justice

I focus on the fight for freedom, justice and peace and hope for our countries, especially in the situation where we are dealing with the financial crisis because hope is the engine of optimism. Freedom is important because in our Western societies, we enjoy so much freedom and we still need to support those who do have freedom because if we don’t help those who don’t have any freedom, then we’re giving dictators wings to fly. When they fly, they oppress their people and find ways to corrupt some multinational companies so that things can go their way. In order to fight religious fundamentalism, we have do discover why people become religious fanatics and we have to fight for separation between politics and religion. When you mix politics and religion, there are more problems. I have written poems about people like Mandela, Martin Luther King, Kevin Rudd and Miriam Makeba because they are icons of justice.

Poetry

I express myself through poetry because poetry goes beyond logic and I express my emotions about these circumstances. I have published my book at I – Proclaim publishing house, which is an imprint of Dorrance Publishing Company, America’s Leading Author Services Company Since 1920. The publishing house is situated in Pittsburgh PA.


INTERVIEW:

Things that I did not know about being an author:

The thing that I did not know about being an author was to find a publisher, who will publish a book for me. The other thing that I did not know about being an author was that it not a publisher who promotes my books for me, but me who has to promote my book and most of the time, I am the one who has to do the hard work. Unless it is somebody like Bill Clinton, Barrack Obama, Prince Charles and other public fugues, that a different story. The thing, which I am still confused about, is the contract. I didn’t know that it would require patience because I cannot stand being patient because I like things to fast. As a new author, I am willing to work hard so that I can learn from experience.

What to Look for in a Publisher:

You need to now that looking for a publisher requires a huge research. Finding the right publisher is an enormous effort and you need to use your common sense. You have what it takes to be an author and I believe, your book can make a difference in people’s life in many ways. As a writer, you write a book because you have something to share with your audience. Find a publisher who values your talent and believes in your ability to succeed as a writer. Don’t look for a publisher who just goes after your money because in the end, the person who is going to pay will be you.
If you have found a right publisher for your book, whether it is non-fiction, fiction, poetry etc. you need to read about the publisher and the service, which they offer you. You must also ask them about signing a contract because; you need earnings for you books as well. Be specific about what you want for your book and determine your goals. Remember that the publisher does not have a responsibility to promote your book, you are responsible for your book promotion and it is going to require so much work from you.

How to Network Online to Promote Your Book:

Before you make a decision to promote your book online, you must know what you are capable to do and what are your limits. Promoting your book online is more complicated than what you can imagine. Ask yourself who your audience is. Write a blog or make a webpage, where you have your book. If you are not able to that, contact a full service online book agency who can show how to sell your book. Remember that your are partners. Do your part, and then the agency will do its part. A public relations firm gives your book the best online distribution. Have a plan and hold on to it. I recommend that you have patience, even though it may be tough sometimes.