Ask the Author: Donald L. Hicks
Answered Questions (6)
Donald L. Hicks
I began meditating and taking quiet walks in the woods a few years back. During these times, I'd sometimes hear the whisper of a single word. It was akin to intuition.
When this happened, that whispered word would often become somewhat of an unspoken "theme" in my life. For two or three weeks after hearing the whispered word, it would repeatedly come up during conversations, or would be an integral part of certain situations. It was like seeing synchronicity in motion, over and over again. Eventually, a "quote" would be whispered to me that included the word, and because of the experiences I'd had regarding the word, this quote would have deep significance. More than once, it brought me to the verge of tears. I eventually began keeping a Word document, wrote down all the old quotes I could remember, and began adding the new quotes. It wasn't long before the Word document of these little "pearls of wisdom" grew to 50 pages. Looking over these quotes, I knew I had plenty of material for a book, and within 2 months, "Look into the stillness" emerged.
When this happened, that whispered word would often become somewhat of an unspoken "theme" in my life. For two or three weeks after hearing the whispered word, it would repeatedly come up during conversations, or would be an integral part of certain situations. It was like seeing synchronicity in motion, over and over again. Eventually, a "quote" would be whispered to me that included the word, and because of the experiences I'd had regarding the word, this quote would have deep significance. More than once, it brought me to the verge of tears. I eventually began keeping a Word document, wrote down all the old quotes I could remember, and began adding the new quotes. It wasn't long before the Word document of these little "pearls of wisdom" grew to 50 pages. Looking over these quotes, I knew I had plenty of material for a book, and within 2 months, "Look into the stillness" emerged.
Donald L. Hicks
I didn't call writing, writing called me. I once had a dream that I just had to write down. That dream became a short story, and eventually a first novella. I've been writing ever since.
Donald L. Hicks
I finished writing "Look into the Stillness" in January, and spent February and March handling the editing and publishing details. Since I'll be working on the "promotional" end of it for the next few months, I probably won't start a new project until the doldrums of summer or the break of fall.
Donald L. Hicks
Twenty-five years ago when I first started writing, self-publishing was essentially non-existent unless a person was willing to pay thousands and thousands of dollars to see their book in print. Traditional publishers only published 4 books out of every 1000 submissions (.04% of received manuscripts). But fortunately, thanks to the electronic age, the whole publishing industry is much easier to break into. You can now have a book self-published for next to nothing. There's little reason not to write.
Donald L. Hicks
A lot of people think it's about money. But the truth is, until you write a blockbuster, there's not much money in writing. For me, it's more about emotional release. Writing can be as healing and inspirational to the author as it is to the reader. But most importantly, it provides a means of reaching and inspiring people you would otherwise never meet. I've read books that have changed my ideas and perceptions of life in positive ways, and if I can repay that to just one person, my debt is paid.
Donald L. Hicks
I like a pro-active approach. I focus on preventing writer's block, rather than reacting to it. How does one do that? It's simple. When you sit down at the keyboard and the words are just flowing out, don't wait to stop writing until you've ran out of ideas. Stop writing while the words are still flowing. I sometimes even stop in mid-sentence. It can be a difficult thing to do because you *want* to keep writing. But that's the point. The next time you sit down, you'll know what you want to say, plus you'll have new ideas. Don't wait for creativity to call upon you, shackle it, and release it when you're ready.
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