Ask the Author: Brett Alan Williams
Answered Questions (6)
Brett Alan Williams
I pick two couples for the reason they reflect my evolution in thought about society. Early in life: Hank Rearden and Daggny Taggart of Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. They were hyper-rational, without emotion, driven to success and conquest. They appealed to me as a teenager because they fit my worldview. I wanted to be like them. That changed. Later I found Charlotte Brontë's Jane Eyre and Edward Rochester most impressive, not only for their amazing command of language, but their virtue. Rand's characters are the epitome of individualism, autonomy, and purpose. Brontë's are virtuous, with belonging, and meaning. To me these are the two competing themes of modernity vs. tradition.
Brett Alan Williams
Wilderness. Especially the American West. Just me and the dogs at some 8000 ft. campsite is a great opportunity for the brain. And, nonfiction books. I get so excited with new discoveries, I expect others would like to know them as well. Some get rolled into my stories.
Brett Alan Williams
The second book in The Father Trilogy.
Brett Alan Williams
Same advice I would give for anything: persistence. That also requires patience - with oneself, others, modernity's distractions, and the slow process of writing.
Brett Alan Williams
Organized contemplation. Without schedules, traffic, or dealing with the modern world, writing is like scared time to visit the people I invented. Frequently amazed at the next thing they do or say.
Brett Alan Williams
In all my years of writing, I've never once experienced writer's block. Quite the opposite - too much material that I'm forced to trim later. My inspiration comes from other authors and outdoor wilderness. There's an ample supply of both.
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