Ask the Author: Jay Chalnick
Answered Questions (2)
Jay Chalnick
Although I wrote the initial (much longer) manuscript for Finding Buddha in just two months, I had an extremely challenging time getting started. A few pieces of advice helped immensely:
1) Make time everyday--even if it's for 5 or 10 minutes. Get in a routine writing for that amount of time each and every day. Be sure the the minimum time is not too daunting or you'll miss a day. Work your way up until you find your comfort zone.
2) Writing a book and selling a book are two very different projects. Despite both being incredibly challenging, it's nearly impossible to write a novel if you're worried about selling it.
3) In addition to the advice I was given (above), I needed to be at peace with the idea of writing for me. If I had just one self-published, printed copy on my bookshelf to share with my family, that would be enough. After all, imagine how disheartening it was for me to know that if I was ever fortunate enough to complete and publish a novel, it was destined to squeeze in between two ridiculously talented authors, Michael Chabon and Dan Chaon. Just my luck.
1) Make time everyday--even if it's for 5 or 10 minutes. Get in a routine writing for that amount of time each and every day. Be sure the the minimum time is not too daunting or you'll miss a day. Work your way up until you find your comfort zone.
2) Writing a book and selling a book are two very different projects. Despite both being incredibly challenging, it's nearly impossible to write a novel if you're worried about selling it.
3) In addition to the advice I was given (above), I needed to be at peace with the idea of writing for me. If I had just one self-published, printed copy on my bookshelf to share with my family, that would be enough. After all, imagine how disheartening it was for me to know that if I was ever fortunate enough to complete and publish a novel, it was destined to squeeze in between two ridiculously talented authors, Michael Chabon and Dan Chaon. Just my luck.
Jay Chalnick
Back in 2010, I spent a lot of time learning about Buddhism--not so much as a religion, but as a philosophy. I also started following the Dalai Lama (not literally, that would be creepy!) and what he had to say. What I found especially interesting was China's swift response to many of the political and spiritual statements the Dalai Lama made. Some of these headlines caught my eye and I began creating a story around this seemingly escalating tension.
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