Is Writing a Solo Endeavor?

Many writers will tell you that writing is a solitary profession.  Unless you're elbow to elbow with a writing partner, the majority of writers are accompanied by their computer, a drawer full of goodies to get the creative juices flowing, a cat or dog (or two) and their thoughts.  But in truth, a writer is never alone.  Whether its fiction or non-fiction, the 'writing room' is filled with the people or characters that inhabit the work.   When I was writing my non-fiction book, "Ghost and Shamanic Tales of True Hauntings", I had my fellow Spirit Light Network teammates peering over my shoulder (metaphorically), making sure I'd captured the highlights and particular moments that made up the investigation I was writing about.  I also had the memories of the clients and, yes, even the ghosts that we encountered and helped.  In my fiction book, "Murder on Ice", I have my main characters sitting next to me, scanning my plotting outline, telling me whether this scene will work, or whether it's just not going to happen.  Sometimes they will hijack a chapter and take it in a completely different direction than I originally planned.  The fun part for me about writing whether its non-fiction or fiction, is that, even if I'm not sitting at my computer and actually typing, I'm still writing in my head no matter where I am.  I'll get flashes of ideas in the shower, when I'm driving, when I'm sitting at lunch with friends.  As with most writers, I have a little notebook I carry around so I can jot down these ideas.  And again, no matter what genre you write in, it's all about the story, capturing the audience's attention long enough to get your message and your words across.  So, in truth, I'm never alone when I'm writing.  Because not only are the characters and the stories there with me, the audience is there as well.  I always have one part of my writing space dedicated to my audience.  They have the power to make or break a writer.  You can be the most brilliant writer in the world, but if you don't connect with your audience, make them a part of your words, your thoughts, your ideas, you might as well use your writing space as an additional closet space, because then you really will be a solitary writer, or as John Lennon once sang, "He's a real nowhere man, sitting in his nowhere land, making all his nowhere plans for nobody".  So make your audience comfy.  Give them pillows to sit on, something to munch on, a drink to sip.  Squeeze them in with your characters who are also sitting there.  The room will get crowded.  But it will never be boring.  And it won't be lonely.

Why Sojourn?

I've been asked by many why did I name my blog a Writer's Sojourn?  In the dictionary, sojourn means a short trip somewhere.  And when you think about it, whenever you lose yourself in a book, aren't you taking a short trip to the world the writer has created?  Now let's take this one step further.  Isn't our life a sojourn of sorts?  In this skin we inhabit, we are here for this short journey; a journey that promises high ups and low lows, a journey fraught with fear, but also adventure.  A journey that will definitely teach you lessons that you need to learn (and yes, even us that practice and believe in the deep spiritualism of shamanism have had to be dragged kicking and screaming through some of those lessons - it's the common denominator that makes us human).  A writer in a sense plays God.  We create a world, we create characters, we create the circumstances they will face and we create how they will choose to face each of those circumstances.  In the "real world", we have a choice on how we will face each of the circumstances that come up.  Part of the choice is really paying attention to how we use our energy to face these situations.  Do we go into what I call 'victim' mode?  Do we meet the situation aggressively?  Do we blame others for the lessons we need to learn?  Or do we take a moment to look at the situation and see it for what it is - a huge opportunity to heal that part of ourselves that is being poked at by whatever the situation is?  Nobody said it was easy.  And yes, it would be nice to have everything tied up in a red bow just like in a novel.  But the wonderful thing is that we can make it or break it.  Its our choice.  Unlike those fictional characters.  So try to enjoy your sojourn.  And try to learn from the lessons daily life presents to us.  After all, you don't want to bring all this baggage into your next life,do you? 

Welcome!

Finally!  My blog is up in which I hope to share my experiences on writing and whatever else comes to mind.  As a writer, shaman, healer and ghost investigator, I'm sure I'll have lots to share with you.  The best news however is that, after coming this close so many times in the past of breaking into the ranks of published authors, my dream has finally come true. In September of 2012, my book "Ghost and Shamanic Tales of True Hauntings" will be published by Schiffer Publishing.  Over the years I learned a great deal about the writing and publishing process.  Each experience, including the disappointing ones, taught me much and pushed me to become a better writer.  Now, not only am I being published in non-fiction, but I'm also preparing to upload to Amazon's Kindle ebooks for sale my murder mystery entitled "Murder on Ice.  It's set in a fictitious town in the northwestern corner of Maine and contains a wonderful and sometimes eccentric cast of characters that I've grown to love and admire very much.  I suppose all writers feel that way about the characters they create.  Hopefully you will too since I'm busy writing Book Two in the Twin Ponds series.  And hopefully you'll pick up my ghost book and learn about why ghosts exist, share in some of the adventures of my paranormal investigative team "The Spirit Light Network", and learn from the tips I put at the end of each chapter on energy and how to understand energy to improve your life.  With my friend and fellow shaman, Steve Wilson, we're working on a follow-up book titled "The Reluctant Empath" which will help all those who are empaths - people who feel everything around them and easily get overwhelmed - understand their gifts and what it truly means to be an empath.  That book will be published in the fall of 2013.  Then, after that, Steve and I are hoping to write about the deep and life-changing spiritual experiences we and a group of our fellow shaman friends had when we went to Peru this past May. In fact, the picture on my blog was taken at Machu Pichu.   So basically, I wear two hats - as a non-fiction writer whose background in shamanism and healing can help those who are experiencing things they don't understand, and as a fiction writer of mysteries.  I can truly say this is a Writer's Sojourn, and I'm so happy to have you along for the journey.