A Slice of Cake With... Derek McFadden

Today I'm delighted to have a slice of cake with author Derek McFadden.

Derek was born in 1982 with a mild form of cerebral palsy and has striven to write the kinds of stories readers want to read (get lost in), the kinds I want to tell. Often Derek's main characters will have the same palsy he does. This is because, as a kid, when he read stories he would always think, none of these people are anything like him.

What kind of books do you write?

My books tend to be somewhere between the novels of Mitch Albom and The Twilight Zone. I will also often use a disabled character as my protagonist and main character. This is because I’m disabled (cerebral palsy), and I am intimately familiar with that life experience. As most readers aren’t, many tell me they find the reading experience fascinating.

Can you describe your writing why?

Some writers admit to a writing compulsion. We have to do what we do. I definitely feel that compulsion at times. I am also quite cognizant that not all people who have what I have are as able to communicate as I am. Communication is a responsibility, and I take it very seriously.

Share with us your favourite passage from the book you enjoyed writing the most

“I love baseball,” says my mom. Who isn’t my mom yet. She is still only Chloe, the woman who introduced me to the walruses. 

She takes me out of school early today. When I ask why, all she will offer is: “It’s a surprise. If I told you too early, that’d spoil everything.”  She tells me what the surprise is just as the stadium comes into view. That’s when she says, “I love baseball.”

We buy hot dogs outside the stadium, massive sausages whose origins are questionable at best. Along with the dogs, we get a big bag of honey-roasted peanuts, two soft pretzels, a couple sodas. Concessionaires call out to us like carnival barkers, but by then our money is spent. Sharing the sidewalk with them is another barker; a small, curly haired man holding a bullhorn. He stands on the corner to be sure all who pass by will notice him. The preacher.

“If you do not accept Christ,” he screams, above the din of passing cars and general excitement, “there is only one place you can go! That place, ladies and gentlemen, is The Eternal Fires of Hell, where you will be set ablaze and destroyed! So make the right choice today! Christ died for your sins! Accept your Lord and Savior, and live for Him!”

His words bother me. Once we’ve left his corner far behind—following a congregation into Safeco Field—I ask Chloe, “Why is it so important to that man that I believe in God?”

She answers, “It’s important to him that you believe in his God.”

“Why?”

“Because, if he can make you or me believe, it will be easier for him to believe. It’ll reassure him.”

“What if I’m not sure what I believe?”

“Then the best thing you can do,” Chloe advises, “is not to pay any attention to him. If you make eye contact with him… they’re like leeches, so it’s a good thing you didn’t. They latch on, and they won’t let you go. They make you their mission. You become someone they can pull to safety, territory to be conquered.

“Terry, always remember this. You can believe anything you feel comfortable believing when it comes to God. Anything. No one should force you into any belief at all.”

“Is he always here, Chloe?”

“That man? Always. Every time I’ve been here, anyway.”

This scene comes from real-life experience. I can’t tell you how many times outside of baseball stadiums makeshift preachers told me if I accepted Jesus, I would be healed. I knew it was B.S. They probably did, too. But they were committed to their mission. I’ll give them that much.

Tell us about your latest project

While I’ve got many irons in the fire, as it were, the project I’m working hard to promote here is my novel, What Death Taught Terrence. Imagine It’s A Wonderful Life told from the perspective of a man who is truly handicapped. Looking back on his life from the beyond, he must determine its meaning. The stakes: If he cannot, he’ll be banned from the afterlife forever and will cease to exist, in any form.

The book has been out a year now. As it is independently published, I am not only its author. I am also publicist, marketer, and all-around shouter-from-the-rooftops. This book is my heart on the page. I understand each book a reader picks up represents an investment of both time and money from their end. As an author, all I can say is thank you for your trust in me, and I will not let you down. If you pick up What Death Taught Terrence, the experience will be unique, fun, and uplifting. It will also likely make you think a little as to your own life, and that’s not a bad thing!

What is your favourite cake?

Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, no question! I still remember the one my grandfather baked for me on my eighteenth birthday as a birthday present to me because that’s what I asked him for. This scene, in fact, made it into my novel. 

You can connect with Derek over on his blog: derekmcfadden.com and all his books are available on Amazon: www.amazon.co.uk/Derek-McFadden/e/B00ANOTXX8

Join me next week when I will be having a slice of cake with Juneha Chowdhury. 

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Claire Buss is a multi-genre author and poet, completely addicted to cake. Find out more about her books on her website clairebuss.co.uk. Join the discussion in her Facebook group Buss's Book Stop.