Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Since I have been active in a number of areas during my life – music teaching and performance, language teaching, astrological research and consultation (to name just a few) – I don’t know whether I should call myself primarily a “writer”, or not, although during the past seven years, writing has been, along with acting, my main occupation. I’ve written at least fifteen books, about topics ranging from music to humor.
Perhaps I should mention that I never write on subjects about which I have little idea – you know, like the many “authors” who get someone else to write for them, or who do a weekend’s worth of research on the Internet, and then write about some topic or another, just to make some money. I only deal with things that enthuse me, and about which I do have both knowledge and experience.
Of course, where fiction is concerned, imagination, and telling a good story, is everything! But even in that area, I feel that the best books are those in which the author pours out his or her soul, instead of simply doing mental calculations to figure out “what might sell”, and then write about that, even if there is no personal passion behind it.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is entitled: “How to overcome Stage Fright – The ultimate Guide for performing Musicians”. It’s a subject I’ve been wanting to write about for many years, since I myself was plagued with stage fright whenever I had to play in public. Using some simple mental techniques, I was able to completely overcome stage fright in only two weeks, after which I gave more than 70 recitals while living in Spain – without suffering from performance anxiety at all. Naturally, I felt a desire to share these techniques with other performers, and thus finally got around to writing this book.
Even though this work is of great practical value, of all my books, it isn’t my own favorite. That “honor” would have to go to “God, UFOs and the Death of JFK”, since it reveals much more of the real me, for the sci-fi/humor format allowed me to deal with a myriad of topics that have always been dear to my heart: psychology, philosophy, politics, economics, religion, self-improvement… you name it!
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I can’t say I have any unusual writing habits, for I don’t really know how the majority of authors go about creating their works. I will say that when I start a work, I will not rest until it is completed. This is not to imply that I spend ten hours a day writing at a furious pace: no way! I’ve done that only once, with my very first book, written back in the 80s, and it was a torture.
When I took up writing again in 2008, I decided that it should be fun, so I decided to only work a few hours a day, and to stop whenever it became bothersome. That way, I am only writing when I feel inspired, and am enjoying what I am doing.
I might also mention that I will only begin a new book when the “right” day comes. that is, I must have the feeling that “now is the time to get that book started!”. Otherwise, I would have to be forcing myself to write when I might not want to at all, and this, at least for me, would put a damper on my creativity.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
As a teen, the author who influenced me most was Voltaire. At the time, I could not read French, so English translations had to suffice. Nonetheless, I was greatly impressed with his mastery of reason, his acerbic wit, and the clarity of his style. Now, I read him in the French original, and am of course just as impressed as I was back then, though my views on a number of subjects no longer coincide with his.
I was also a great fan of John Steinbeck, whom I consider to be a sort of “Beethoven” among modern writers, due to the immense emotional power of certain works of his.
In the esoteric field (or “new Age”, as it’s usually called today), my favorite book is “The Nature of Personal Reality”, by Seth/Jane Roberts. It should be read by everyone with an open mind, for it can truly be a life-changer!
What are you working on now?
At the moment, I am “between books”, so to speak, which isn’t to say that I have run out of ideas. Far from it…
As far as fiction is concerned, there will be a second volume of “God, UFOs and the Death of JFK”, or “my Lizard Book”, as I affectionately call it when speaking with my wife. So to all you fans of Cornelius: There’s a lot more to come!
In the area of non-fiction, I am planning to do a work designed to teach people how to teach languages. It will be a sort of companion volume to my “Language Learning – Outside the Box”. But whereas that book is meant to help you to learn a language, this new one will show you how to effectively teach others to speak your language.
Another book project of mine will deal with the area of belief, and how human beings tend to convert ideas into beliefs, and then go on to form “belief structures” that then in turn form our minds, influence our relations with others, and ultimately play a major role in determining “who we are”. Chalk this one up to the genres of psychology and philosophy, but also to “practical self-improvement”.
There are at least 10 others on my list of “books to write”, but there’s no need to “spill the beans” about each and every one right now, is there?
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Hard to say… Until now, I have mainly promoted my books by simply writing more of them. The problem was that it got to the point that whenever someone asked me how many books I had written, I myself wasn’t sure. That’s why I created a website (www.dboltoncreations.com), so I’d have a place to display them all (though my most recent one hasn’t been included yet: it’s such a pain to deal with html code!).
I’ve only recently begun to look for ways to promote through book groups, promotion sites, etc. “Awesomegang.com” looks really impressive to me, and if I see that the free promotion option works well, I’ll be doing some paid promotion with them, no doubt.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
To new authors, I can only say: Follow your passion! Write about what makes you enthusiastic, about things you love. Do you want to write nonfiction? Well, almost certainly there is some area in which you excel. Write about it; share your expertise, no matter which area is concerned. If you’d prefer writing fiction, let your imagination be your guide. And no matter what you write, make sure you express yourself as well as you can.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I’ve ever heard? Now, that one’s really hard to answer. Most probably, it would be the inscription at the temple of the Oracle of Delphi: “Know thyself”. An entire book could be written on this one maxim, and its importance for the life of each and every individual. Mmm… perhaps I should add that to my list of “books to write”?
What are you reading now?
At the moment, and as is generally my wont, I am reading a number of books…
David Hume’s “A Treatise of Human nature”; “The Trouble with Physics”, by Lee Smolin; “Jerome Cardan”, by W.G.Waters; “Protect Yourself – Global Financial Meltdown” by Robert Wiedemer, and a few more.
One is in German: “Zeitabschnitt des Schicksals”. It was written by a friend of mine. A very interesting premise: the writer describes, from her (now deceased) mother’s point of view, what happened when Germany lost the war, and the German people living in the Sudetenland were subjected to atrocities by many Czechs, including the government, Though it is quite understandable that the Czechs would want to seek revenge for what they had suffered under Hitler, this book shows how a simple German girl of twenty, who had little idea of politics, suddenly found herself in grave danger, and had to summon up all her resourcefulness to get through that most difficult period alive. Unfortunately, the book is only available in German at the moment, but I am considering translating it for the English-speaking world, since the story is quite gripping.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m going to keep writing about areas I love, and will also continue writing some fiction, though my works in this genre will probably always serve as a vehicle for getting messages across that I feel are important: the importance of reason in our lives, but also of intuition, and inspiration; the obligation of the individual to develop him/herself to the fullest; the necessity of getting along better with others, and joining forces to create a better future for all.
Of course, adding some “ethical instruction” to a novel doesn’t mean that it can’t be entertaining, perhaps humorous, and a lot of fun to read!
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?
I know that many people, when asked which books they’d bring along if they were going to be stranded on a desert island, say things like “War and Peace”, “The Bible”, or whatever. Sure, there are some books that I absolutely love, but the truth is, if I could only take three or four, I wouldn’t bring any of them along. Instead, I would look for nonfiction books about things like: “How to do emergency first aid”, “How to fish”, “How to make your own hunting weapons”, “How to survive on a desert island”, and the like. After all, you DO want to remain alive on that island, don’t you?
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