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David McCabe, director of the Teacher Preparation Program at PCC, spoke to students and PCC visitors in a symposium about his manuscript, “Without Sin” and the experiences of unpublished writers.”Without Sin,” his novel told from the backdrop of the US-Mexico border about a relationship that develops between a young Mexican prostitute and a border patrol agent, is currently being shopped around to publishing houses by a literary agent.

The first half of the April 24 symposium, held in the Cross Cultural Center, was spent discussing the writing process and what the current state of reading in the US means for writers.

With literary reading in steep decline, especially among young adults, McCabe suggested would-be writers engage in reading themselves.

“The focused attention required and the growth of imagination that comes with reading enriches public life. To lose connection with the written word is to become less independent in your thinking. If you’re a writer, take the time to learn from those who have written,” he said.

Most essential to writing is actually writing, McCabe said. “You have to write,” he said, suggesting journal writing and carrying post-it-notes to collect random thoughts. “Writing is an act you have to be fully engaged in or it just doesn’t get done.”

The shape and the scheduling the writing process takes on depends on the writer, McCabe said. For him, morning proves productive. “I write in the early morning hours when my family’s sleeping or on the train commute from Riverside to Pasadena.”

Knowing your subject is also important, he said. “Write with connection and an authentic voice about something you know, something you’re passionate about.”

His interest in the subject matter of “Without Sin” came a few years ago, when he read a newspaper article about Mexican girls who were being brought into the U.S. under false promises of citizenship, legitimate work or marriage proposals. Once in the country, the girls were forced into lives of prostitution at Los Carrizales, an outdoor brothel in Oceanside, CA shrouded by overgrown reeds and bamboo cane.

“I felt compelled to go there. I could not imagine something like this existing in my America, let alone Oceanside,” he said, adding that his two visits to the camp provided him with a strong sense of place when he was writing.

The photographs he took at the site and shared at the lecture show empty beer bottles, used condoms and discarded underwear scattered among the reeds. The bleakness inherent in the site is captured in one of the passages McCabe read from “Without Sin.”

The camp was raided in 2001, but when the case was brought to the courts, none of the men running the operation were prosecuted. The girls, fearful of their lives, refused to testify.

A few years later, a broadcast by local NBC affiliate, KNBC, brought the story to a wider audience. The city of Oceanside plowed over the obfuscating reeds, but those in charge of Los Carrizales simply moved their business site down the riverbed, where exploitation continues to take place.

“This is a story that needs to be told. There’s true human suffering going on in one of the most profitable, wealthy regions of Southern California,” McCabe said.

Navigating the world of publication has been hard going, the author said, referencing a stack of 40 rejection letters for effect. Three groups expressed interest in the manuscript; one agency, Ryan Communications, is now handling the manuscript.

For their part, PCC students are eager to get their hands on a copy of “Without Sin.”

“I can’t wait to read it. This talk he gave was sort of different, because I’m used to seeing Mr. McCabe in class, cracking jokes. This is obviously an issue he’s very passionate about,” said Terrence Bryant, a 19-year-old political science major.

“I feel like he’s unraveling the secrets of these young, undocumented girls that the rest of society overlooks,” said 19-year-old liberal studies major Thalia Torres.

Ilse Escobar, a 20-year-old political science major was impressed by McCabe’s ability to tie the experiences of trafficked Mexican girls to that of undocumented workers in general.

“He did a great job of linking the immigrant women being used for sex to the exploitation of immigrant laborers overall. This kind of exploitation happens all over the world,” she said.

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