Featured Authors

Terry Lord

Interview by Neil Gabriel Nanta Feature by Kathleen Crucillo

In the age of informed youth and progressive thinking, justice continues to be a complex subject. It is still intangible to most people, especially to members of the marginalized sector. Terry Lord addresses this problem in his informative memoir, as well as the ethical and moral decisions involved in law enforcement—using the printed word to educate the common people.

Terry developed a curiosity for literature from the infl uence of his 9th- and 12th-grade school English teachers, taking a penchant for writing as a young boy. The same mentors introduced to him the power of persuasive writing and instilled in him that well-read writers produce the best works. He educated himself with the fi nest literary works from various authors, philosophers, and historians as a way to improve his writing. His enthusiasm inclined him to write about his journey in becoming a federal prosecutor for 30 years and his experiences in a society hampered by corruption and injustice. Terry states, “I wanted to share my knowledge and experience in criminal prosecution with young lawyers and people who wanted a better understanding of law enforcement’s role in the society.” In his fi rst book, ...And Justice for All: Life as a Federal Prosecutor Upholding the Rule of Law, he stresses the crucial role of law enforcement offi cers and prosecutors in society and the diffi cult decisions they make in upholding the truth.

Being a prosecutor requires a high degree of diligence and a strict moral compass, as does being a member of the community. Everyone must respect honesty and integrity and uphold their social responsibility. Terry urges people to expose the enablers of organized crimes in order to punish those who imperil public trust. He commits to this obligation through his book.

New Reader Magazine got a chance to do an exclusive interview with Terry Lord. See how it went right here! pandemic. Although many of my usual activities have been curtailed, I still play tennis a couple of times a week, and work out with a trainer at the gym to keep myself in shape. Also, I have gone to my ranch on a regular basis to fi sh and enjoy the countryside. Home confi nement has resulted in reading history and keeping up with the news on TV.

NRM: Who were your early infl uences in writing? TR: My English teachers in the 9th and 12th grade were the most infl uential for my initiation to writing. These ladies were intent on instilling the necessity of reading a broad range of literature, poetry, history and news in order to be a good writer. I learned from them how to write more persuasively by using examples from fi ne literature and anecdotes from history and the essays of philosophers. They inspired me to write with passion and enthusiasm.

NRM: Justice is something that, until now, divides people. So it’s always great seeing writers produce books like yours. How did you feel fi nishing your book, and knowing your story will infl uence readers? TR: It was always my desire to reveal the intricacies and nuances of the investigation and prosecution of complex criminal cases. The diffi cult ethical and moral decisions made by law enforcement offi cers and prosecutors have a huge impact on the Rule of Law and I wanted to share my knowledge and experience in criminal prosecution with young lawyers and people who wanted a better understanding of law enforcement’s role in society. Writing my memoir gave me a feeling of connection with those who desired a deeper knowledge of how law enforcement really operated at the local, state, federal and international level. I felt that the story of my career might infl uence some young people who might seek a similar position in public service.

NRM: What values do you think a community needs in order to combat corruption? TR: Communities must respect honesty and integrity among all elements and institutions, and, most importantly, law enforcement. Public corruption is the most insidious of criminal activity because it infects every area of illegality from street

New Reader Magazine: With the pandemic going on, how are you? What has life been like at home? Terry Lord: I have managed pretty well during the

crime to bribery of elected offi cials. A high degree of diligence and persistence is required to pursue and punish those who violate the public trust.

NRM: If you could say one thing to the world right now, what would it be? TR: Corruption and organized crime are symptoms of a society that has lost its moral compass. We cannot tolerate those who would use their power over communities to embezzle and pilfer the public treasury. Law enforcement must expose those who would turn a blind eye to organized crime and be so weak and greedy as to take money from criminal elements.

Barry Bauerschlag

Interview by Aira Calina Feature by Keith Ayuman

Born in the cradle of faithfulness and love of his mother and father, Barry Bauerschlag spent his life thus far cheery and grateful. In his book, Aggie Spirit 101: Greater Love, he particularly explores his days of being an Aggie in Texas A&M, with which he aims to spread to its reader the contentment and grace the experiences brought to his life. With an abundance of infl uences as he matured, both in literature and music, Barry has not simply written a book. He has also made a consciousness-stirring piece of literary work about being an Aggie.

Barry fi rst fell in love with words and literature at a young age, growing up in a wholesome circle of neighbors and loving parents whose minds were open enough to let Barry discover an ever-growing world, and remain curious in a world that demands one to constantly learn. After being introduced to the works of Dr. Seuss, comic books, and the profound spiritual words he read in his third grade King James Version Bible when he was young, Barry went to college with an already expanded imagination. The folk music revival in the early to late 60’s whose lyrics appealed to him like poetry in his youth also helped shape his person.

Barry encourages a life of contentment, gracefulness, and kindness for everyone and he does it with the one thing he has always been fond of: writing.

In NRM’s interview with Barry, we explore his life from young boy to manhood and everything in between and of course, his book. Read all about it here! NRM: What was an early experience where you learned that language had power? Barry Bauerschlag: As with almost all people, the language that most infl uenced me were the parental voices: my young parents, still teenagers when I was born. My cheerleader mom and her best friend, Mary Lou, whom I called Lulu, let me know I was loveable and capable. My dad spoke faithfulness to facts and lived by honor and under the structure of the law/rules. I also remember proud words from my maternal grandfather, kind words from our pastor next door, holy words from the church services he led, and profound spiritual words I would read in my GI/WWII third grade King James Version Bible from our family’s St. Andrew Methodist Church!

Other words that shaped me and my awareness were from the many kinds of music I loved to listen to: pop, jazz, country, and especially the contemporary folk music at [which was at] its peak in my youth and young adult years. Often called the “Singer/Songwriter Years,” I heard blessings from the poetry of artists like Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, John Lennon and Paul McCartney, James Taylor, John Denver, Jim Croce, Joan Baez, and Don McLean.

As a child I remember the fun of reading Dr. Seuss and comic books, then becoming enthralled with library books by such authors as: Mark Twain, Edgar Allan Poe, Jack London, Arthur Conan Doyle, Edgar Rice Burroughs, and Zane Grey. Amazing was their ability to stir my imagination and expand my consciousness, to take me to fascinating places and involve me in new mysteries and drama. They helped me to seek solutions and demonstrated new ways to investigate possibilities.

Many biographies invited me into the lives of fascinating heroes and the adventures of explorers and inventors, athletes, and peacekeepers!

As a top math and science student who also had an art scholarship, as well as leadership in my church’s youth ministry, I was perplexed about what to study in college and ended up taking on a Mechanical Engineering degree while majoring in the ROTC Corps of Cadets where I excelled and learned a lot of “Aggie Slang!”

The two electives I was afforded allowed me to choose Argumentation and Poetry Analysis where I made top grades as I studied logical and illogical debate and/or persuasion, along with the ability of words to evoke images and feelings, the symbolism of metaphors, and the effectiveness of fables and anecdotes in communication to add passion to purpose!

NRM: Aggie Spirit 101: Greater Love is a great recounting of your experiences as an Aggie. What’s one thing that could make you say you did the right thing sharing these things to the world? BB: In sharing the concepts and stories in my book, I feel justified as I see people in leadership adopting the foundational and core values that I proclaim in Aggie Spirit 101: Greater Love. Not only are these principles and practices setting trends and establishing styles which are more effective strategies for educating leadership, but also their inspiration, insights, and energy are welcoming successes and winning momentum!

Key athletes, coaches, educators, and administrators have been fed, healed, redeemed, and encouraged to greater levels of success with their teams, organizations, families, as they are exposed to the inspiration and insights of the wisdom of which I write! Individuals achieve higher honors, teams win greater championships, programs accomplish unprecedented goals!

The Greater Love of God’s Truth and Grace wins amazing victories in a wide variety of settings as people, especially leaders, learn how to better “plug in their soul phones!” What greater joy than to see such impressive successes in the people you care about and care for as God keeps His promises to bless others through us in our faithfulness! It is the ripple effect of righteousness! “God blesses the home of the righteous.” Proverbs 3:33

What Peace there is in God’s Promises and discovering and confirming how they are kept!

NRM: What was the most difficult part of your writing process? BB: The most difficult part of my writing process is simplifying without being simplistic. This includes the task of breaking into pieces the parts of the puzzles without losing sight of the big picture.

It is having the patience to lay out the narrative step by step, connecting the dots as I go, so as to maintain the excitement of solving the drama of new consciousness and creation! It is helping the reader enjoy the journey of exploring each tree in the forest until we see both the forest AND the trees! It is all the joy of putting a whole puzzle together, along with concluding a drama which embraces the winning of that particular contest/challenge: claiming God’s victory whether Win-Win or Win-Lose! Celebrating the Championship of God’s Undefeated!

NRM: Did you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find? BB: One of the “Secrets of Success” that I hope is not too hard to find in my book is the “Art of Creating, Sustaining, Regaining, and Maintaining Momentum!” What begins with God’s Amazing Grace as shown by the forgiving father in the story of the Prodigal Son, is so powerful as we celebrate small steps that grow to greater strides. “For God so loved the (wicked) world...” and “while we were yet sinners,” knowing that “he who loves the most is he who has been forgiven the most!” Greater Love learns how to “Shield the shame” when undeserved, and “Shake the shame” when we are culpable and need to admit our mistake, say we are sorry, and seek anew to do right and make amends!

Celebrating successes leads to an upward spiral of confidence, character, courage, and momentum, while forgiving oneself quickly with repentance helps restore and regain any momentum lost! The “Victorious Living” of Truth and Grace is all about “heart and smart,” about staying “fired up and focused!”

NRM: What message do you want to convey to fellow Aggies and other readers? BB: My main message in Aggie Spirit 101: Greater Love is that God loves you and wants to bless you more than you can imagine, but that you need to embrace not just the principles of God’s Word through Faith, but also practice Christ’s Greater Love.

Grace is free, but it is not cheap! The cost of discipleship is the Cross. We must learn to plug in our “Soul Phone!” The Greater Love Heart Logo on the cover [of my book] represents this truth: Christ in our hearts and the Cross in Christ; the resulting flames are the gift of the Spirit’s purpose and passion leading us to the greater gift of Victorious Living which I like to call “Cup runneth over!”

Mahmood Shairi

Interview by Kyla Estoya Feature by Aira Calina

Once a poor 14-year-old boy in Iran, Mahmood Shairi chased after, worked hard for, and eventually achieved the American Dream. It wasn’t a simple stroke of luck: he not only had the vision for his future, he also had the determination to get it. When he spoke of his experiences at Bible study, his pastor told him he should write a book about them. As a go-getter, that’s exactly what he did.

An Iranian Boy and His American Dream: From Rags to

Riches is only one of many stories about journeys made to the United States in search of a better life. Mahmood’s memoir stands out in that despite the many setbacks and trials, he never once lost his faith that he was going to reach his goal.

Mahmood is a personifi cation of success who survived adversities because of his loyalty to his ambition. New Reader Magazine got to talking with Mahmood about his thoughts as a writer, and his what- and whereabouts during quarantine. Read about that quick and fun chat right here!

NRM: With the pandemic going on, how are you? Mahmood Shairi: I am doing well but very bored sitting at home! [But] I am building a new house for myself, and that’s helping me stay a little bit busy. NRM: What do you like to do when you’re not writing? MS: I walk a lot. I go on bike-riding and a lot of fi shing, and watch 10,000 movies a week. LOL!

NRM: What do you think makes a good story? MS: I read a lot of autobiography. I like stories of famous people who came from nowhere and made it big in life. Stories of what they went through to get there [are stories that I think are good]. For example, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s life story. He is just one of many people that I admire.

NRM: If you could tell your younger self anything, what would it be? MS: Try to read people a little better, and don’t believe everything that comes out of their mouth. For example, fi ve of my six wives really fooled me. They told me exactly what I wanted to hear, but not who they really were. I guess I am very easy to fool.

NRM: What do you think is an important thing writers need to cultivate? MS: To be able to tell their story as it was or as it is.

fear and violence as his utmost priority, he reminds readers to worship and love the One who has done all good things and who alone is worthy of exclusive devotion and that is the God almighty. He knows that his books explain everything in reality, and present the fi rst complete universal understanding of all things, since science has failed to do so.

Joel David Rinker

Interview by Kyla Estoya Feature by Sarah Eroy

The unending thirst for more knowledge about the reality that we all exist in was what made author Joel David Rinker start writing.

Joel heeded God’s call for him to write a book about his thoughts. He believes that his writings will be used as a tool to get the Lord’s people to stand together against evil. Ending

Joel’s books lead readers to look to God for help. They prove beyond a shadow of any doubt that He exists and is willing and able to help His people. And if people think they can find a solution for everything without seeking for the Lord, then He will let them do so. But Joel knows with all his heart that He will not let people who have faith in Him be destroyed along with the idolatrous ones.

New Reader Magazine had the chance to interview author Joel David Rinker as he discussed how his books teach readers to find hope despite everything.

NRM: With the pandemic going on, how are you? Joel David Rinker: I actually am doing very well. I am relatively unaffected to the extent that others are. I believe God blesses me because I am furthering His purposes. But I do believe the world, myself included, are headed for huge trouble. I am trying to prepare the best I can for it. I feel very bad for my fellowmen, especially with what happened to NYC financially, which I saw first-hand.

I think that this whole Coronavirus thing has been beaten to death. There is way too much misinformation, and purposeful misinformation about it. The virus doesn’t kill people, and it doesn’t even present any symptoms usually. That is why people need to get tested, because they have no symptoms.

The real threat is the complete destruction of the world economy, as in NYC, and the conditioning for people to submit to the leaders of the world, and the so-called experts, to gradually submit to whatever they tell you to do. It starts with face masks, and goes further and further.

The real problem is also suicides, drug use, and mental and physical problems, and other things. Every year, there is a pandemic, because every year there is a flu virus, and is usually more severe than this one. Pandemic is a word that is used, and misused. Every worldwide disease is a pandemic. That means every year when we have a flu virus, we have a pandemic. It is used I think because it sounds like the word pandemonium, which subconsciously scares people into submission.

NRM: What does literary success look like to you? JDR: To me it looks like something that will affect people for the better. It should also do something positive for the author. The author should find some degree of satisfaction in what they are writing, and it should lift and be upbuilding to both author and reader. It should be informative, and should have something of value to offer the reader. And some wealth would be nice too. Especially if it is a book that earns that.

I am offering in my series of books—The Writings being my first one—omnificence, revolution, solutions, peace, and answers that you never even yet knew you needed, and the complete obliteration of your belief system. For well under $10. NRM: Do you think someone could be a writer if they don’t have empathy? JDR: No I don’t. As a writer, you constantly need to feel for the other person and visualize how someone else, your target audience, would take what you say, and whether or not they would understand what you wrote, and how different audiences would react, and if those reactions are in harmony with the purpose of your book in the first place.

NRM: What do you think makes a good story? JDR: If something is totally fictional, and has no basis in reality, or what reality could be, I personally feel that it is worthless, and not even entertaining, and many times borderlines on dishonesty. A good story should have a moral, a lesson that improves people to be better members of society, and makes them more educated. It should be enlightening. It also should make you experience strong emotions, and draw you into the storyline. And it shouldn’t have to end happily. That’s reality.

NRM: As a writer, how would you use your talents in helping people through this global crisis? JDR: My books will help people unite, not under corrupt government, or even under a corrupt World Government, but with the truth. My books explain everything in reality, and present the first complete universal understanding of all things. Science has failed us in that. They don’t understand anything, nonetheless do they have a unified theory of reality. And what they do present is something scary like out of a science fiction movie. It does not comfort all people, in every possible way, as my books do.

I am not afraid of a virus, because my books prove that there is one God, that He is more than capable of handling any virus, or anything, for that matter, and that He will do so, when it is His time, not when it is our time. I have a plan to reach everyone in order for them to be more like God—the way they are designed.

The global crisis is not a virus. If that were the case, God would have dealt with it a long time ago. The crisis is, in fact, the complete cancellation of the truth, self worship, and unspeakable moral dissolution, degradation, and the loss of all trace of any type of courage and moral conviction.

My books look to God for help, and prove beyond a shadow of any doubt, that He exists and is able and willing to help us. I do that, while everyone else looks elsewhere for a solution that they will never find. Ever. And if people think they can find a solution for everything, without looking to God, then God will let you do so. But He won’t allow the people like me who look to Him as they should, to be destroyed along with these idolatrous ones.

Please read my books. Christian Love and Faith are now combined with complete proof and evidence. Worship God, not yourselves. He is worth it, you’re not. As for this virus, a piece of advice, don’t believe the “experts.”