1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. How did you get into writing?

I’m a private English tutor and have been doing this for about eight years in total now.

2. What inspired you to write your book?

The inspiration for my first book came while I was watching BoJack Horseman. My cat came to sit with me while watching and I usually refer to him as a “brick shithouse” and “shit” came up several times in the episode. When the episode finished, I had the idea, “how many phrases and expressions with ‘shit’ can I come up with in five minutes?” When five minutes passed and I was still going, I knew I had something if nobody else had already done it. 

 3) What theme or message do you hope readers will take away from your book?

Swearing isn’t good or bad, it just is and the context we put it in makes it good or bad. I think people will think a little more critically about how swearing is viewed and used based on the science and cultural examples given. For example, it’s hard for people living now to think of “bastard” as the worst taboo in existence, but it was. Besides that, I hope they realize the diversity of ways that we incorporate swearing into speech and just how many meanings they can have. 

4) What drew you into this particular genre?

I’ve been an English tutor for about eight years in total and doing it full time online for about four years now, so I sometimes get questions about slang and curses. I know that there are many uptight people in my field that don’t want to explain these things as well because of the ideas they hold toward those words, phrases and expressions, but if we don’t explain these things when students want to know, we hold them back from reaching their goals of achieving true fluency or mastery. Not to mention how embarrassing or dangerous it can be if you’re learning a language and misuse a curse.

5) What social media site has been the most helpful in developing your readership?

I’m terrible with social media. I started a FB page and was making posts for a while, but then it was a matter of laziness and “what do I post?” and it was the same with IG. 

6) What advice would you give to aspiring or just starting authors out there?

People thinking about writing or just starting out, just realize that marketing your book is going to be way more difficult than writing it. Chances are that no literary agent or publishing house is going to want to work with you, so you may have a high belief in your project, but no one else is going to share the same enthusiasm that you do while you’re in the process. Editors can be expensive, but they’re necessary. Look at the different types of editors as well, they all serve different purposes. If you don’t have much money to spend on developing your book, the one thing you shouldn’t try to save on is cover design. A bad design will be a sure way to put readers off before they ever look inside. 

7) What does the future hold in store for you? Any new books/projects on the horizon?

I’m in the process of transitioning to a healing and forgiveness coach. I still teach English full time and my autobiography is being beta read by four people right now, so I’m hoping that when all is said and done it’ll be released around August 2022. 

About the Author

Gary Marinin was born in Worcester, MA and is a digital nomad and world traveler, having lived in Macedonia, Kosovo and Mexico. He has a B.S. in sociology from Worcester State University where he got his first taste in writing through several independent study courses and internships. To further develop his writing and ideas, he took master classes from Margaret Atwood and Steve Martin and read several books on developing screenplays. He freelances on Medium and likes to write about topics that he’s passionate about, which vary from workers’ rights to women’s rights and everything in between. Know Your Shit is his debut book, but there are several others in the works ranging from psychology and linguistics to general humor about his cats.  

https://www.facebook.com/TheShittionary

https://garymarinin0140.medium.com/