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Stephen Weinstock

Goodreads Author

Born

in Chicago, The United States

November 12

Website

http://www.qaraqbooks.com

Twitter

S_Weinstock

Genre

Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction

Member Since

November 2012

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/1001series

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For years I had the idea of a novel puzzling out a past life history between a group of souls, the frame tale structure of The 1001 Nights holding it together. For free stories, blogposts, and offers, see my website. For the series, 1001, The Reincarnation Chronicles, see The Qaraq, The Qaraq and the Maya Factor, and The Qaraq and the Subversive Manuscript.

In my past life before 1001, I created music for theater (Magic Theater) and dance studios (Merce Cunningham, Martha Graham). I worked as a musician/teacher at UC Berkeley, Juilliard, and the 'Fame' school, as well as the NYU Musical Theater Writing Program. By day I bring dancers to ecstasy with my improvisations, but at night I enter the world of metempsychosis, historical fiction, and ...more

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Is work on book 4 of The Qaraq ongoing, or are you working on another project? Your series is one of only a few novel series' I am looking forward to continuing.

Stephen Weinstock Dear Irkalla,

You have made my year! Thank you so much for asking about the qaraq! You are one of a very special group of people that I am aware have b…moreDear Irkalla,

You have made my year! Thank you so much for asking about the qaraq! You are one of a very special group of people that I am aware have bravely made it through the first three books of The Reincarnation Chronicles. To put the time and brain energy into the complexities of the books so far, and to want to go further, is a wonderful tribute to your imagination as a reader and a soul. I am so pleased you have enjoyed reading the series.

As for Book Four, now titled The Qaraq and the Unfathomable Journeys, I confess that it has been a very difficult time moving forward. A year ago the book was written, edited, in the midst of a final draft when I hit a crisis. Was the series too arcane and complex to develop a readership? I paused to re-think the series and restructure Book Four in relation to Five and Six, its sister volumes. As I went back to redo the final draft of Book Four, the coronavirus struck, my musical work in dance education became all-consuming overnight, and my family decided to move our household. For the first time in years I stopped writing on a daily basis.

"Stop whining! I just wanna read the next book!" I hear you thinking (ha!), and I wish I could satisfy your interest soon. As many positive souls looking at the world right now believe that what is happening is a purgative or revolution that will lead to a more evolved future, I believe that my writing upheaval and life changes are leading to a day soon when I will plunge back in and write Books Four, Five, and Six in semi-rapid succession. I better because there are 11 books in the series and I'm pushing 70!

So your note was such a blessing of hope to me, a message of motivation to figure out how to return to our soul-traveling friends in the qaraq. Thank you, thank you, thank you, and feel free to respond with any other questions you might have. I'd be happy to provide some teases about what's coming in Book Four, and what the Akashic Records will reveal about the qaraq's history. Be well!

Steve Weinstock(less)

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How do you deal with writer’s block?

Stephen Weinstock I've been writing for over a decade, but luckily have only had one bout of writer's block in that time, a serious one, but from which I learned a lot.…moreI've been writing for over a decade, but luckily have only had one bout of writer's block in that time, a serious one, but from which I learned a lot. I was writing Book 3 of 1001: The Reincarnation Chronicles, which delves deeply into the history of Islamic fiction. There is a central section of the book where the qaraq, the group of souls remembering the past lives they have shared through time, recalls two dozen lifetimes in Medieval days, when they were compiling a special version of the Arabian Nights. It's full of court intrigue, Islamic Empire history, and literary conundrums. That is, it's a very dense section.

My dependable writing process (see the previous answer) started moving slower, and then every page came out with more difficulty, and finally I was writing only one sentence a day. The density of the section had trapped me like a fisherman's net. I struggled with it for several months until I suspected something more was going on.

The best description of writer's block I came across was from Anne Lamott's wonderful Bird by Bird. She says that it is simply a time when the artist is depleted, there's no more gas in the unconscious, and there is nothing to do but recharge. This means resting (I had been working super-hard at my day job, too, but had the summer off), enjoying nature or self-nurturing things (I was on vacation in Amherst), and continuing to write, but in simple, non-goal-oriented ways (I found a copy of the Artist's Way Journal in a used bookstore and started journaling every morning).

That fall, when the Journal process was nearly complete, I was ready to write chapters again, started slowly, and was up to speed soon after. The hardest part of the whole experience was not knowing what was up at the beginning. But if I hit that place again, as I probably will, I'll recognize it and know what to do. I've also become a bit mindful of not pushing too hard and depleting myself (a bit). Maybe this knowledge alone will keep me healthy.(less)

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Stephen Weinstock’s books

Average rating: 4.45 · 22 ratings · 6 reviews · 5 distinct works

	The Reincarnation Chronicles #1 (1001 #1, The Qaraq) really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 9 ratings — published 2014 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Qaraq and The Maya Factor (1001, The Reincarnation Chronicles #2) 4.86 avg rating — 7 ratings — published 2015 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Qaraq and the Subversive Manuscript (1001, The Reincarnation Chronicles #3) 4.60 avg rating — 5 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Qaraq (1001, The Reincarnation Chronicles Book 1) it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Qaraq and the Maya Factor (1001, The Reincarnation Chronicles Book 2) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Dec 21, 2019 09:20AM

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Stephen Weinstock wrote a new blog post Frame Tales: From Arabia to New Mexico I first loved the use of the frame tale while reading modern literature such as The Saragasso Manuscript. I had always love structures like Chinese p Read more of this blog post »
Jul 01, 2026 02:51AM · like
Stephen Weinstock is currently reading God's Surprising Way: The Path to Lasting Joy, Healing, and Love by S. Jeyran Main	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
May 13, 2026 04:34PM · like