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R. N. Matos
Writing about one self is always a difficult task. It is so easy to make up things for stories, but telling a complete stranger the truth about one's life is a whole other thing. One doesn't want t...view moreWriting about one self is always a difficult task. It is so easy to make up things for stories, but telling a complete stranger the truth about one's life is a whole other thing. One doesn't want to come off braggadocios nor embellish too much on the uninteresting. At the same time it is a rare opportunity that one has a chance to tell ones story. So, I shall do my best to tell a good story about myself.I was born in Havana, Cuba at a time when Castro had solidified his control of the island and those who knew better were trying to get out. My father was an anti-revolutionary, a Christian and a distant relative of one of Castro's cohorts who had fallen out of favor, Huber Matos. None of which promised a good future in the new world order of Cuban existence under Marxist-Leninist rule. We left the island when I was four or five years old and from the moment I saw a Woolworth I swore I'd never go back. My father managed to get a job working for the Chase Manhattan, but shortly after that he decided to become a Baptist Minister and he moved the family to Texas. It was a shock to the cultural system. New York City was just so different from San Antonio Texas in 1978. The adjustment was difficult. It was the first time I would hear the N-word, spic, wetback and where Cuban meant I was just another Mexican. I adjusted. I learned to love the state of Texas because with all its faults there is an unmatched sense of freedom I have felt no where else. My senior year in High School my parents moved to Jacksonville, Florida and went through another cultural adjustment. I was enrolled in Nathan Bedford Forrest High School and was exposed to open interracial relationships for the first time. I always found it ironic that in a High School named after one of the founding members of the infamous Klu Klux Klan, an African- American young man with dreadlocks wearing a Jamaican flag on his shirt was walking hand in hand with a blond blue eyed girl wearing a Red Raider t-shirt. Still, these experiences were instrumental in shaping my views on politics, religion, society and economics. I Joined the Army and enlisted with the Airborne Infantry. I was stationed in Alaska for three years with "Charlie Airborne." I left the military in 1989 and enrolled at the International Fine Arts College in Miami - now known as Miami College of Art and Design. I earned an Associates degree in Commercial Arts. I then enrolled at Florida International University. I started illustrating for two small independent comic book companies and then later got my first real job working for a software company designing their packaging. In my graphic design career I've worked for Rum companies and freelanced for high fashion models. Currently, I live in Miami, Florida. I'm married to a beautiful woman who is half Honduran, half Puerto Rican, was born in New York and was raised in North Carolina. How's that for diversity? I have a beautiful nine year old daughter as a result of who we now have a zoo in the house including four dogs, ten geckos and three snakes. I enjoy photography, hiking the paved trails of the Everglades with my family, playing video games and drawing. I am a huge Star Wars fan. My favorite drink is the Mojito. I can't stand whiskey, scotch or tequila, but I do enjoy Patron. I drink beer with friends and enjoy taking their money in a game of Texas Hold'em. I never imagined I would ever write a book, much less a 500 page novel. I have always been a good storyteller, but preferred to express myself visually through illustration and painting. My wife, who has always been an avid reader, urged me to turn my story into a series of novels. I started researching and writing Chronicles of the Damned in 2000 and self-published the first book in December of 2008. I expect it will be a best seller one day and I hope it will become a great movie. This might sound pretentious, but one has to aim high when shooting at such a distant target.view less