Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
This is now my third book, but this one took the longest to write, fourteen years of research. I wanted something that was going to define disruptive thinking in a new way, apart from the old, stale way the business word uses it. I think this is a fresh approach, and it’s the first time someone has provided the tools used by genius-level Disruptors to illustrate just how easy it is to learn.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The title is – Disruptors: The Gateway to Genius Level Thinking. My original thought was to write a book about what made people successful. But then I thought about Napoleon Hill’s book, Think and Grow Rich, and one day it occurred to me that the word “rich” didn’t necessarily refer to monetary rich. Suddenly, I thought, “well, what if success doesn’t always mean what we think it means?” And as I interviewed people and dug in a bit deeper, I noticed that most of them had no clue why they were successful, but that they all thought success was tied to financial wealth. I just didn’t like that answer, so I kept looking.
Disruptive thinking, which I actually stumbled upon, and is founded on intuitive thinking, is something that we all possess, it’s just either been forgotten or, like most people, it’s been taught out of us at an early age by our school systems. The one’s who have made the biggest disruptive breakthroughs are those people who have maintained their true intuitive nature. This was a path I wanted to explore and cultivate.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am old-fashioned. I like writing it out by hand first. Then I type everything into my computer, and then I print everything out and lay it on the floor for sometimes months, while reworking the order of pages and chapters. It’s a long process, but it kind of reminds me of those quirky professors who worked out their theorems and ideas on a blackboard. Since I never went to college, I kinda like the process. Makes me feel collegiate.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
How much room do I have here? That’s like asking what kind of music do I like. I can say that I love how Walter Isaacson writes and researches, I love every book that Andy Weir ever wrote, I recently read NeuroTribes ny Steve Silberman, loved it! I rad Julia Child’s My Life in France, Behave, Brave New World, Richard Power’s Bewilderment, a Pulitzer Prize winner, Most anything by Lee Child (the Jack Reacher series), I like John Grisham, Adam Grant, and Steven Pinker.
I had to read a ton of lofty, heady books for research on psychology, the mind, genius, creativity, the human condition, phenomenology, ontology, etc. Phew!
What are you working on now?
I still have some writing and marketing to do for this book, and I am creating a training program for it, plus, I am developing a test for disurptive thinkers. But I am also researching for my next project which will be a series of thriller books. I am excited to try a new path.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
NO CLUE. I am not of the Social Media generation, and while I am technologically savvy about computers and electronics, I am clueless when it comes to promotion or self promotion. But I work at it every day. Don’t know if I’m making a dent, but at least trying.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
YES! We all know that writing a book is hard. It is a long, arduous, and often lonely process. And when we are done, we think we should be grandly rewarded by landing on the top of the New York Best Seller’s list, or at least win a Pulitzer. But alas, no.
My advice and recommendation is, take several months after you’ve completed your book (or during, if you are of a more determined nature), and work on the marketing. I would say to give yourself 6-10 months of just building your platform.
I had to learn the hard way because my first two books were prior to Social Media and did so well, that I thought the third book would do the same. Like Rumpelstiltskin, when I woke up, the world was completely changed. Now I spend a great deal of my time writing articles and blogs, posting (sometimes meaningless) stuff on social media sites, and doing a lot of self promoting, which is a bit counter to who I am.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Dr. Wayne Dyer’s Rule #6 – “Don’t take yourself too seriously.”
BTW – There are not rules 1-5, just 6.
What are you reading now?
I read several books at once:
Finishing Bewilderment by Richard Powers – Highly recommend, Faraday, Maxwell, and the Electromagnetic Field, by Nancy Forbes, Batman and Psychology, by Travis Langley, Plato’s The Trial and Death of Socrates, And The Reason I Jump, written by a thirteen year old boy with autism, Naoki Higashida. Just amazing.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Sleep, see if the outdoors is still out there, write some more, revisit friends I’ve had to put on hold, and enjoy life.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
My book, of course, The Complete works of Sherlock Holmes, 1Q84 trilogy by Haruki Murakami, which I forgot to mention as one of my favorites.
Author Websites and Profiles
Craig Copeland Website
Craig Copeland Amazon Profile
Craig Copeland’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Great interview