Monday, May 7, 2012

Peace, Love and Snacks: An Interview with Author Stan Starsky

Today we welcome Stan Starsky as he stops off during his book tour hosted by Virtual Book Tour Cafe. I had two thoughts as I was reading through this interview. One is that Stan Starsky would make the great name of a comic book hero and two, that never before had I heard anyone refer to food as a story character. Read on to see what I mean and get your own dose of peace, love and snacks.


MK: If you had to sum it up Peace, Love and Snacks in 30 or less words, what would you say?  

SS: It has a ridiculous tone but with seriously great and original snack food combinations and ideas.
 
MK: What inspired the idea behind your book?  
  
SS: As much as I like to eat healthy I find that eating snacks like apples or bananas can get pretty boring.  However, most of the recipes that I found for so called healthy snacks contained large amounts of processed sugar...So in a quest to eat healthier snacks, I began making my own granola bars.  Soon I was making healthy dips and I eventually came up with a wide range of original snack ideas.

MK: Where did you come up with the title?   

SS:  I wanted to find a title that had a lighthearted tone.  So my sister suggested the title “Peace Love and Snacks” and I decided to take her advice.

MK: Do you have a favorite character in Peace, Love and Snacks? Who and why? 
    
SS: Yes, granola...I think granola symbolizes healthy snack food. (I got a kick out of this one-granola as a character).

MK: Without giving it all away, please tell us a little something about how 'Granola' is going to get through their biggest challenge.   

SS: The biggest challenge that I had with granola at first, was that I could not get it to stick together when making granola bars.

MK: What has been your greatest challenge in writing the book?    

SS: The greatest challenge was coming up with new recipes.

MK: What has been your greatest pleasure in writing this book?    

SS: Finishing it.

MK: What is your favorite non-writing pastime?    

SS: Sure, coming up with mouth-watering snack combinations.

MK: What message do you hope readers take away from the book?  

SS: I hope that readers will now be empowered to “take revenge against junk food” and will choose to make and eat healthier snacks.

MK: When did you decide to take that step that made you a published author?   

SS: I was making healthy snacks for family members and my cousin pushed me to write the book. (Ah, the persuasion of family).

MK: What do you have in store next for your readers?   

SS: I am doing a series of snack recipe videos which you can view at http://peaceloveandsnacksvideos.com/

MK: Will you share with us a short preview of Peace, Love and Snacks?

Like you, I also have a past.

It all began many years ago when I operated a vending machine route. I started out small, distributing snacks from a minivan, and as my route expanded, I moved up to a cargo van. Eventually, I was driving around in a fourteen-foot box truck delivering salty chips, candies and soda, and for the five years I spent as a junk food dealer, everyone else was expanding, too.

So, how did I wind up writing a cookbook about wholesome edibles?  Hold on, I’m getting there.

I can’t justify my years as a distributor of junk. Maybe it was the thrill of the cash business or the glamor of driving a loud ten-year-old cramped box truck with a broken air conditioner in the height of the summer. Whatever the reason, I had essentially become a fallen snack angel—an empty soul delivering empty calories. 

I have to admit, running a vending route really is great exercise. I was loading cases and cases of sodas and snacks on and off a truck and into buildings all day long, burning lots of calories.

As a result, I would get really hungry, and after a while, I would stand in the back of the truck as my stomach rumbled, surrounded by so-called food but seeing nothing I wanted to eat.

You see, when I first started the route, I opened up some of the packages and ate the contents. The snacks sure tasted good, but I never felt too good afterward.

So, I was in a pretty dark place, snackfully speaking. I actually prefer not to talk about it. I was overwhelmed and full of despair, and my heart was heavy with painful memories of artificial flavors and preservatives.

I had to make a change...I wanted out of this snack enigma...this soda-filled, chip-heavy, candied conundrum.

Maybe it was because I felt threatened by the sweets, the deep-fried chips and other completely empty calories surrounding me. Or maybe I was feeling a bit guilty for peddling barren calories and needed to even up my snack food karma. Or maybe I was just drawn into the irony of it.


Title: Peace Love and Snacks
Genre – Non-Fiction/Healthy Living/Weight Control
Publisher – Self-Published

Email – stan@peaceloveandsnacks.com
Website –
www.peaceloveandsnacks.com

 JOIN THE TOUR!


1 comment:

  1. Thank you for joining us today Stan. I know I'm ready for some yummy snacks now.

    ReplyDelete

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