Ask the Author: Michael Paul Stephens
Answered Questions (6)
Michael Paul Stephens
My next book to publish is called "Why are We Here?" It's basically an answer to that question, while taking in life, the universe and everything.
After my last two books, "Provolution" and then "Equanimous", I wanted to write something that would tie those two works together. So "Why are We Here?" is a simple answer that takes the basics of "Provolution" and the esoteric bits of "Equanimous" and paints a picture that I think most people can understand regardless of their background.
Most spiritual books are either quite a turn off for the average reader or too technical, so the idea was to create something quite simple that could cut between those two extremes.
Hopefully, I hit that middle road. But only time will tell :)
After my last two books, "Provolution" and then "Equanimous", I wanted to write something that would tie those two works together. So "Why are We Here?" is a simple answer that takes the basics of "Provolution" and the esoteric bits of "Equanimous" and paints a picture that I think most people can understand regardless of their background.
Most spiritual books are either quite a turn off for the average reader or too technical, so the idea was to create something quite simple that could cut between those two extremes.
Hopefully, I hit that middle road. But only time will tell :)
Michael Paul Stephens
I didn't get inspired to write. It feels more like writing inspires me. It's hard to explain but I never needed encouragement. I started writing when I was 15 or 16, writing three books in two years, rattling them out on an old typewriter. They never got published. But I loved the process of their creation.
Its more like I need to write than i'm inspired to write. Sometimes I feel like a pot bubbling over with ideas and words and i've got to put them somewhere. Maybe that pot was once filled with the angst of a teenager but now its more like a set of canvases that need to get filled with certain shapes and forms that I haven't seen anywhere else.
That, I suppose, is the inspiration. But it feels more like a calling than an inspiration.
Its more like I need to write than i'm inspired to write. Sometimes I feel like a pot bubbling over with ideas and words and i've got to put them somewhere. Maybe that pot was once filled with the angst of a teenager but now its more like a set of canvases that need to get filled with certain shapes and forms that I haven't seen anywhere else.
That, I suppose, is the inspiration. But it feels more like a calling than an inspiration.
Michael Paul Stephens
While I've been a non-fiction writer since 2010, in April I finished a science-fiction story that expresses many of my spiritual ideas. It was a lot of fun writing it and i'm now seeking a publisher.
The upshot of this is that, as I enjoyed it so much, i'm already working on the sequel! Hopefully everyone will get to read them both as they're a lot of fun, very topical with all the madness in the world and even contains a couple of characters you would all know very well.
Hilary and Don - your time is up ha ha ha!
The upshot of this is that, as I enjoyed it so much, i'm already working on the sequel! Hopefully everyone will get to read them both as they're a lot of fun, very topical with all the madness in the world and even contains a couple of characters you would all know very well.
Hilary and Don - your time is up ha ha ha!
Michael Paul Stephens
Don't listen to too many people. It's very easy to get sidetracked, confused, demotivated and stuck.
At the end of the day this is your book about your subject matter and its your style. It may be niche, it may be popular. It may sell millions, it may sell none. But at the end of the process, writing is about personal expression and to end that expression writing to other people's specifications is like Picasso copying Michelangelo.
Even though you may never be as celebrated as them in your art, being uniquely you is the best selling point you have. Listen to a few you trust but stay true to your intention and your style.
At the end of the day this is your book about your subject matter and its your style. It may be niche, it may be popular. It may sell millions, it may sell none. But at the end of the process, writing is about personal expression and to end that expression writing to other people's specifications is like Picasso copying Michelangelo.
Even though you may never be as celebrated as them in your art, being uniquely you is the best selling point you have. Listen to a few you trust but stay true to your intention and your style.
Michael Paul Stephens
The best thing about being a writer is the infinite range of possibilities. As i'm writing one book, ideas always pop into my head about the next one. It's like walking out onto an uncharted land each day with no map and a sense of "Where ever I go, that's good enough." It allows me to explore ideas and concepts in myriad ways that, were they just stuck in my head, I think would drive me completely mental. :)
Michael Paul Stephens
I never push my writing. I don't write to schedules. If I feel like writing, I do it. If I don't, I do something else. Part of the problem with any blockage is trying to push the block through when it may just be a message to take a break.
I manage my time and write when I'm going to enjoy it. Then, I know it will be productive.
I manage my time and write when I'm going to enjoy it. Then, I know it will be productive.
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