Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Appalachian Trail Happiness is my first book and has come out of my blog the Ministry of Happiness that I have been writing for 6 years. I’ve become a firm believer that people are happier when they stretch themselves and get out of their comfort zone. To celebrate my 50th birthday I hiked 1000 miles on the Appalachian Trail.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Appalachian Trail Happiness, which grew out of the Ministry of Happiness and my philosophy of happiness through action. To celebrate my 50th birthday I hiked a thousand miles on the Appalachian Trail. My hope in starting out was to get as far as my knees would take me, get enough material for the book and hopefully walk to Maine. The book is a collection of the stories accumulated on the way and a discussion of how to live a happier life.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t think so, as a part-time author I’m often writing at night after work and need a secondary distraction when I do, something to do with winding down from the day. Although, I was fortunate that when I wrote the first draft of Appalachian Trail Happiness I was fortunate to be able to hide away in Pensacola and write full-time for 3 months, using the Pensacola downtown library as my writing space.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
For hiking related books I really have a lot of admiration for David Miller who has written both AWOL on the Appalachian Trail and the AT Guide which is the guide nearly all AT thru-hikers use. Generally, I love David Brin a science fiction writer and several poets for the poetry writing I do, Charles Bukowksi and Warsan Shire among them.
What are you working on now?
I am currently working on a Happiness Guide culled from the work on the Ministry of Happiness blog over the last 7 years. Working title, that I don’t, like is Thoughts on Happiness and I hope to have it out before the end of the year. I also hope to have a poetry collection, Otherness, published early in 2018.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
The network through my blog, Revkane.com, Twitter of course and my Facebook page, but to be perfectly honest I sell a decent number of books after speaking engagements.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Enjoy the writing part, writing a book is the fun part, everything after is work and marketing, particularly for self-published authors is a beast!
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Find something you love and let it kill you ~ Charles Bukowski
What are you reading now?
Guerrilla Marketing for authors, that likely is not much of a surprise.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I’m continuing to work hard, I have a pattern of leaving my full-time job every few years to take off on a new adventure. My next adventure is about two years away and I hope to be writing about that afterward. My hope is to over the next few years to transition to my current day job being the part-time piece of what I know while I write and speak to earn my main income. You have to have big dreams.
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 would bring Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, the book saved my sanity at a time when I was hitting rock bottom as an alcoholic. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, as many times as I’ve read that book it still makes me laugh out load. Crucifix in a Death Hand: Poems by Bukowski it’s a combination of great poems and it’s a visually stunning book and my favorite in my book collection. Finally for practical reasons the Army’s Survival Training Manual.
Author Websites and Profiles
Michael Kane Website
Michael Kane Amazon Profile
Michael Kane’s Social Media Links
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account