Interview With Author Maya Wyld
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hi, I am Maya Wyld. I am a modern-day digital-nomad, storyteller, and explorer of both wild landscapes and inner worlds. A trained geologist with a lifelong curiosity for the natural world, I enjoy most the living and writing of stories where science, spirit, and adventure meet. I am a tree-hugger, chocolate maker, travel lover, and the author of two transcendental memoirs: Crazy Free and Once, When I Was Tree.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is Once, When I Was Tree. It’s a collection of true stories from across my life—from my childhood in New Caledonia in the South Pacific to deep experiences with Mama Ayahuasca in the jungles of Costa Rica. The book explores the natural world through the idea that all beings, alive or inanimate, are sentient, wise, and deserving of respect. The spark for it came from Mama Aya herself, after a night when she let me be Tree (the essence of a tree) and see the world through a plant’s “eyes.”
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am not sure “I” write. It feels more like stories find me and demand to be downloaded onto the page or screen. And when they do, there is nothing else in the world. I can forget to eat, drink, sleep, or even look up. I love that feeling of being “taken over by the stories.”
What authors, or books have influenced you?
My mind adores the intricacy of wordplay, the sounds and rhythms of writers like Steinbeck or Maya Angelou. But it’s Paulo Coelho—with his simple, natural sentences—that moves my soul the deepest.
What are you working on now?
Oooh. The next story will be an interstellar romance, based on a true story (my own), about a woman who lives two lives, one in this world, with a steady career and a gentle husband, and another on a far-off planet, building a life with a lover who stirs something she can’t ignore …. until the realities blurs and she begins to lose sight of what is real—and what is fair.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
My best method is word of mouth. People read my books, recommended it to their friends, and thus the seeds get blown into the wind. For online promotion, I see the best spikes with Instagram posts combined with Awesome Gang and such promo websites.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write from your heart. Don’t worry about making it perfect, or suitable, or attractive to such and such audience. Write the books you want to read, and your people will find you.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best advice I ever received from a published author came when I asked, “What do you do when the flow of writing gets blocked?” He said, “Then it’s ‘me’ time. I dive into the things I love, and soon the book gets curious and comes back to me.”
What are you reading now?
Right this very moment, I’m traveling, and—as tradition dictates—I’m re-reading Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist for the millionth time.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Fame and fortune, obviously.
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?
Ideally, I’d take as many practical “how-to survive on a desert island” books as I could—guides to finding water, building shelter, foraging, and not dying. I imagine I wouldn’t read much. I’d study the weather and wave patterns, look to the horizon for passing ships, build a raft … Am I being too pragmatic with this question?
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