A USF alumnus has agreed to do free publicity for a book, the proceeds of which will go to fund cancer research.

John Mudd, a member of the USF class of 2001 and a former Student Government senator, will give the book free publicity through his public relations and marketing communications practice.

All the proceeds from The Acorn Gathering: Authors United Against Cancer, including author and editor royalties, will be donated to The American Cancer Society to aid cancer victims.

Mudd decided to give the book free publicity because he felt he could relate to the hardships of having to live with a disease.

“I’m a lifelong diabetic, and its trials have been hard at times, but some of the cases of cancer I’ve seen make the trials of diabetes look easy,” said Mudd.

The book’s main author and editor, Duane Simolke, combined the talents of five other writers with his own in order to produce the anthology. The book begins in a West Texas setting and takes readers across several landscapes during times of trouble, change, hope and triumph. The stories range from gritty to controversial and touching. The book is a spin-off of Simolke’s first book, The Acorn Stories

Simolke got the idea for this book while driving back to his home in Lubbock, Texas. During the drive, Simolke was brainstorming about ways he could use his gift of writing in order to help others. It was after the trip, and partly due to the fact of having lost loved ones to cancer, that he decided to write for a cure for cancer.

“I’m not sure if I’ll ever do anything as important in my life,” says Simolke.

The five authors who joined Simolke in writing this book are as follows: Jan Chandler, who writes science fiction, fantasy, erotica and poetry; Shawna Chandler, whose poetry has been featured in The Pelta Press, 3AM Magazine, The Journal of the Blue Planet, Coil Magazine, The Lubbock Magazine and many others; Huda Orfali, author of Blue Fire and Flower in the Cold; Bill Wetzel, a student at the University of Arizona who is a published poet; and Timothy Morris Taylor, an educator with a passion for the arts.

Mudd graduated from USF in 2001 with a B.A. in mass communications, specializing in public relations. He is the son of Jerry Mudd, Pinellas Park’s city manager and Sherry Adams of Big Spring, Texas.

The anthology, which was published June 28, is published by iUniverse. See for more information.