I mentioned in the post on why I decided to write, that a lot of the religious content for Return To Paradise was inspired by the Holy Spirit. The truth is, I feel most of the book was inspired by the Holy Spirit, and it was only through the Holy Spirit that I was able to write the book.

One of the reasons I didn't start writing the book earlier, even after having developed most of the story line, was that I was pretty sure that I didn't have the ability to. And I am not a pessimistic type person, or one who easily gives up on things. I have often learned to do things, or accomplished things, simply because I took the attitude that if I set my mind to it, I could do it. At the same time, I'm a pretty good judge of my own abilities. There are things I do well, and am confident of myself in. And there are things I know I simply can't do. For instance know I can't throw a baseball ninety miles an hour. Nor, with any amount of work or practice, would I ever be able to. I also know I can't sing. If you doubt me on this, I'd be happy to give you a demonstration - ear plugs are recommended.

When it came to my assessment of me not being able to write a book, it was not made groundlessly. I read a lot, and I have read a lot of fiction. I was thus well aware that it takes more than a simple story to create a novel. There's plot structure and development, character development, and dialogue among other things. Although I can't say when, because it wasn't a conscious thought, I know at some point in time I started thinking in the back of my mind about writing a book. That's because when I'd read a novel, I would find myself analyzing these elements and how the author developed them. And my conclusion was that I could not do what they did.

So ultimately, in the end, here I was feeling called to do something I didn't think I was able to do. How did I deal with it. The first thing, was not to tell anyone. Not even my wife. Only after she heard me in my office pecking away at the computer keyboard for a couple of nights, was I forced to fess up. And then only after making her promise not to tell anyone. The reason for this was simple. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to write it, and I didn't want to have to explain that to people when they started wondering why I hadn't finished it.

I have been told that God will not ask you to do any task without giving you the ability to accomplish it. And so it has proved true with Return To Paradise. God took the idea I had developed for a story, and through the Holy Spirit, gave me the inspiration, motivation, and ability to turn it into a novel.

How do I know this, and how do I know I'm not just deceiving myself. I told my wife early on that there would be one simple test. If very few people read it, and those that did said it was stupid, then I would know I had deceived myself and this was just another (yes I have had a few) dumb idea of mine. On the other hand, if more than a dozen or so read it, and more than one or two said they liked it, then it was in fact God and the Holy Spirit who had guided me, for I would have accomplished something I was previously incapable of. As I write this, about two months after the initial release of Return To Paradise, somewhere around 700 copies have been distributed (the majority through a free promotion I ran). That's a long way from the New York Times best seller list, but it's a lot more than a dozen. And all of the feedback I've received so far has been very positive.

So where do I go from here. I know that if I am called to write, and I follow what the Holy Spirit leads me to write about, it will be something people find worth reading. If I decide purely on my own to write something for my own benefit, it will probably be something noone wants to read. Will there be another book? Right now the answer is probably yes. What will it be about? Will it be a sequel, or something new? Right now all I can say is that it will have a Christian theme. Beyond that, God only knows.