I'm Carmen Capuano. When
I was five years old I saw my father smash my mother’s front teeth right out of
her mouth. And
the saddest part of that statement, is that I’d already seen it all before.
I’m
a survivor.
One
of life’s hanger-on’s, a refuser of taking the easy-way out; I’m the one who
won’t give up. The one who will keep fighting, even when others would admit
defeat. Because if I do, if I actually
give up, I’m not sure what will be left for me.
Maybe
nothing. So
that’s why I write.
I
write to prove I’m still alive.
Jigsaw
Girl is, I believe, one of the finest and most heart-rending books I have
written. Every line of dialogue, every situation she finds herself in, every
time she has to fight just for survival, these are the hallmarks of her life.
And I understand them so well.
I’m
neither black nor Asian, but I was raised in poverty, dragged up in the
unforgiving streets of Glasgow, daughter of an Italian, wife-beating, gambling
father, and an ineffectual mother. You think misery belongs to the ethnic
minorities? I’ll tell you now that it doesn’t.
But
I don’t tell you this to garner your pity; I tell you to let you see who I am.
These are my qualifications for writing this story, my badges of dishonour.
Look
at me, look at my pictures – you will only see what I allow you to. But read my
stories and you are let into the depths of my soul. It may not be a nice place
to be, but God help me, it’s real.
To
date I have written 27 books, only six of which I have published. They cover
most genres because that’s how real life is – hard and gritty but also bizarre
and full of unexpected twists and turns.
So
why should you chose me, out of all the writers out there? Maybe because I can
tell a good story. Maybe because I’m a workaholic. Or just maybe because I’m a
tortured soul.
And
if there’s one thing human nature loves, it’s vicariously experiencing someone
else’s misery - viewed from a safe distance of course.
Roll
up, roll up, come see the freak show.But
that’s not all of me. I’m deeper than that, at least.
You
will find me charming, honest, hard-working and conscientious. The raw terror
at life is hidden, the pain subsumed, condensed, spat out onto the pristine
page.
You
want to know how real life can get?
The
book is open, all you have to do is read…
Welcome
to Jigsaw Girl.
