Rico Lamoureux is a young American author living in the Philippines. Power of the Pen is his autobiography. For a full interview with Rico, click here.
Ten years ago Rico Lamoureux left behind everything he ever knew and headed for the other side of the world in the name of love. Never could he have imagined what lay ahead.
Faced with overwhelming obstacles under Third World conditions, he refused to return home without his soul mate and therefore remains among the harsh environment he describes as “the complete opposite of the Land of Opportunity.”
With so many years having passed, Rico’s unwavering American spirit has kept him going strong, now using his passion for storytelling to pave the way towards a better future.
“I’m writing my way back home, one pen stroke at a time.”
And now, an excerpt from Rico's Power of the Pen: Mom’s belt was becoming more and more frequent, especially since Child Protective Services were no longer checking in on us. And not just our bare butts, but sometimes our arms and legs too. She was heavy set, and didn’t really control her strikes since they came out of anger. So they were much too hard. Add to that hard slaps to the face and the barrage of verbal abuse and it gets to the point where hate is truly developed. You feel so helpless because there’s nothing you can really do, or at least that’s what we thought. It’s an unbearable feeling of being trapped. You’re completely under this person’s control, with no physical chance of being able to defend yourself. You feel so lost because you know there’s no way to avoid it. It’s coming and there’s nothing you can do about it. Then after the physical pain, you feel so frustrated. Wishing you could somehow get back at them. Who knows what the source of the poison was going off inside that brain of hers!
She’s always been the type of person where when she gets mad at one person, or thing, she gets mad at everybody around her. Such a trait truly disgusts me and shows nothing more than extreme lazy and weak mindedness. There’s no excuse for it, and to this day I refuse to tolerate it.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have a choice back then. There’s nothing more I wanted in this world at the time than to defend myself against her. To somehow return the pain. Well, as I said, you’re pretty much stuck with no options. So I did the only thing I could think of…
While I was still in her womb, my mother started a baby book for me. A collection of poems, letters to me, and song lyrics, including that oldie but goodie, Angel Baby. A song she said always reminded her of me.
One night I was lying in bed drenched in tears after receiving her wrath. I devised a plan to get back at her...
The next morning I left my backpack open. Right before I left for school I quickly put that baby book in my bag, zipped it up, and headed out the door. My heart was beating a mile a minute!
A few blocks from the apartment complex I saw the trash can that was pictured in my mind the night before. I took out my baby book and as I walked past the trash I tossed it inside.
Half of me felt guilt, the other half, redemption. It was an act done out of desperation more than anything else. I was only nine and a half years old, yet part of my innocence was lost with that baby book.
There's no greater fuel for a pen than life experience, creativity, and a love for storytelling. A fact which lead Rico Lamoureux to the realization that he was destined to become an author. From a childhood of abuse and poverty to overcoming life-altering health conditions. From being trained in an ancient martial art to finding his soul mate. With an artistic heart and an ambitious spirit, this diverse journey Rico takes the reader on is indeed an intriguing and unforgettable one!
Welcome, Rico. Your book is an autobiography. Does it cover your whole life up to this point, or does it deal with a specific time in your life? It covers my whole life up to the present. All the significant chapters so far.
Why did you decide to write an autobiography? I wanted to let people know who I am. Especially those who support my ongoing work as an author. In addition, I’ve always known that I would someday write my life story. Early on, when I looked around and realized I was already experiencing more than other kids my age (most of which were not good experiences, but rather the harsh realities of coming from an abusive and poverty-stricken home) something inside told me that I would one day share my unique story with the world. And as if fate knew this as well, the cards I was dealt, the curveballs that were thrown at me, continued to be unpredictable and very challenging as I grew older. And now I had arrived. I knew in my heart that I had finally come to the point in my life where it was time to pick up a pen and tell my personal story.
What will others learn from reading your autobiography? I have learned a lot about myself from learning about others. I believe the same can be true from those readers who choose to read my autobiography.
What song would you pick to go with your book? People who know me, who know my story, have told me I remind them of the song, I Believe I Can Fly, by R. Kelly. That would probably go along well with the book.
Where’s home for you? Home will always be my beloved USA. But for the past 10 years home has also been beside my beloved wife, who is from the other side of the world, the Philippines. So for a decade now I’ve sacrificed my wonderful, diverse land of opportunity and have chosen to prevail under harsh Third World conditions. We hope the Power of the Pen will allow us to come home soon.
Tell us one weird thing, one nice thing, and one fact about where you live. One weird thing about the Philippines—Compared to back home, Christmas is not really Christmas. Instead of being wrapped up and cozy in a winter wonderland, you sweat up a storm. From the absence of the aromatic smell of Christmas trees, to the all-around holiday spirit. This will be the twelfth Christmas I’ll be dreaming of a real Christmas. One day I’ll be able to show my wife how it’s really done!
One nice thing about the Philippines—tax Is already included in the displayed price of things. No having to figure it out before you get to the register.
One fact—The Philippines is the texting capital of the world. And countless people have walked into me as a result!
Do you outline or write by the seat of your pants? When I write my novellas I have a general outline in my head, but most of what I write naturally comes about with the flow of my pen. (That’s right, I’m the old-fashioned type. A pen is still more natural to me than a keyboard-ha!ha!)
Do you have another job outside of writing? No, I practice what I preach when I say follow your passion. I’m grateful to my readers for keeping my pen moving!
Rico, I certainly hope your pen continues to move and you reach your dream of returning to the USA. Thanks for talking to us about your life and your book.
Readers, on Thursday read an excerpt of Rico’s book, Power Of The Pen, on A Blue Million Books.
About Rico: Ten
years ago Rico Lamoureux left behind everything he ever knew and headed
for the other side of the world in the name of love. Never could he
have imagined what lay ahead.
Faced with overwhelming obstacles
under Third World conditions, he refused to return home without his
soul mate and therefore remains among the harsh environment he describes
as “the complete opposite of the Land of Opportunity.”
With so many years having passed, Rico’s unwavering American spirit has
kept him going strong, now using his passion for storytelling to pave
the way towards a better future.
“I’m writing my way back home, one pen stroke at a time.”
Ten years ago Rico Lamoureux left behind everything he ever knew and headed for the other side of the world in the name of love. Never could he have imagined what lay ahead. 
