Guest Interview with South African Author Jacob Singer

Today I'm pleased to welcome South African Jacob Singer to be my guest. He writes true stories about people he has known. His featured book is a fascinating true story of courage he promised only to write after the primary character was deceased.
Jacob, tell us what genre or genres you write. I write about people I knew as I grew up in a town called Potchefstroom in South Africa. I would then call the genre historical romance.
Are you a pantser? (You write by the seat of your pants rather than preparing a plot, and the story is all there in your head.)   Yes, the story is in my head… stories I have lived with all my life.
What do you think today's readers want and how does it differ from readers of the past? Todays readers want a good story, about events that truly happened. Unless of course they are looking for porn.
You're probably right. What book do you want to feature in this post? The VASE with the MANY COLOURED MARBLES.
The story is about a young girl, Emily Kleintjies, born into the Cape Coloured Community of South Africa during the apartheid era. She finds that she cannot live as a second class citizen in a country that she loves. She jumps the racial barrier, changing her name to Emma Kline, and moves to Johannesburg from Cape Town. With the help of friends she makes, many who believe that she is Jewish because of her surname, she succeeds in establishing a life as a White. However she lives in constant fear of being discovered. The book is about how she succeeds and how she raises a daughter, Marla.
This amazing story is true, so it must have a message. My book does carry a message. Hendrik Verwoerd, the founder of apartheid brought in legislation that all non-white should receive a poor education, so that they would always be servants to the Whites of the county. This means that the present Government of South Africa was not properly educated to Western standards, and rule by their tribal education, namely ‘look after yourself and your family first, and everyone else second.’ Emma Kline believed that it would take at least three generations, before South Africa would be ruled at westernized standards.  
Note from Trish: (I don't know whether I see it quite that way, but it's an interesting take. Living in the USA I've come to realize that racial segregation was just as bad here at one time, only the government didn’t put a label on it that could be perpetuated by the media.)
Choose one character from the book and tell us what he/she would say to you if he/she was to meet you. Marla today would thank me for writing a story about her mother; about how hard she worked throughout her life against the apartheid system of South Africa.
Did you self-publish or query and hope a publisher would accept your work? Publishers turned me down when I submitted the book, which was disappointing, so I self published. 
Rejections are something all writers have to deal with, but at least in today's world we do have the option of self-publishing. What do you do to promote your writing? Any and everything possible. Must say the stress is abnormal.
Marketing is the hardest part of our vocation. What advice do you have for your fellow writers/authors? Make sure that ALL grammatical errors are corrected, so employ a GOOD editor, then submit your book to every publisher accepted by Preditors and Editors. Be patient.
Excellent advice. Tell us about your next project. Learning how to reach the general public with a book title.
Yes, the titles we give to our books are very important. Why do you think we should buy your book? First of all, it is a beautiful story, about a young girl who with all the handicaps of a cruel racial system facing her, succeeded in life. Secondly, you would like to know what happened to her, and especially her daughter, Marla, who is still alive living as a happily married woman with a beautiful family.
Please tell us a little about yourself, Jacob. I studied Pharmacy in London at Chelsea Polytechnic, from 1953 to 1958. Much of my book covers my stay in London. Returning to South Africa, I practiced Pharmacy in a town called Potchefstroom, hence the name of my first book, BRAKENSTROOM, a book of short stories told to me by my parents and friends. I started writing when a good friend died of a heart attack at a young age. I simply had to tell his story, and how he affected my life. Then it was a story about my grandfather, so that my children would know him. The other stories just followed and flowed from my fingers.
The VASE with the MANY COLOURED MARBLES is a story I lived with all my life. I promised only to publish it after Emily had passed away, so it took many years to write.
My wife and I emigrated to Canada in 1992, after our children, who we encouraged to leave had established themselves and no longer needed our financial support. We encouraged them to emigrate, after I was threatened by the South African Security Police for refusing to give them certain information. They then poisoned our dog, Gamboo, as a warning to us. 
Living in Canada, my wife and I work very hard to make a living – long stressful hours. Fortunately our children are well established, and have given us seven grandchildren.
What are your hobbies/passions/pastimes? My hobby is trading the stock market, and writing for magazines on Technical analysis. My passion, a 5pm Scotch on the rocks, and a good Turner Classic movie.
:D Where can we find out more about you and your work?
WEBSITE : http://www.jacobashersinger.com
 BLOG:  http://koospetroos.blogspot.ca and http://petroosp.yolasite.com
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/Petroosp
AMAZON    http://www.amazon.ca/Vase-Many-Coloured-Marbles-ebook/dp/B005MZ1D2M/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1360528748&sr=8-3