SQ: James, thank you very much for this opportunity to share your story. Did you start writing the book right after your daughter’s death or did the healing – and book – come later?

JP: Sara, I never thought I would write a book about anything. But when my daughter Kristin died in 1980 at 10 and a half years of age, I went into an emotional funk I didn’t realise existed until 18 years later, when I came out of it. The death of one’s child is the most severe pain a human can experience. I resolved I would understand my pain and if it could go away or change into a more bearable form.

I discovered years ago in order to prove to myself knowledge was what I thought it was, I had to write about it then read it back to myself. If it made sense within the context of my nature, then it was knowledge. If it did not, it was not. After more than 18 years of struggling, crying and anguishing for the truth of Kristin’s life, I finally (while driving home from work) understood. It took two additional years of writing / reading back to myself to become confident I had discovered truth – not only about the value of Kristin’s life but about the value of life itself as it exists within nature. Only then did I begin to realise my documenting of truth might turn into a valuable book. With another year of effort The Mind of God became a book.

Sara, healing from such an event never happens! Healing is not something a parent of a child who has died seeks … What a grieving parent wants / needs to understand is the source of their pain so they can learn to live with it, happily and without guilt.

SQ: Your words ring true to my parental ears, James! What is the book’s basic message and themes?

JP: Happiness, salvation and eternal life are achievable by rational thinkers. If one desires such aspects, they can be achieved by one’s own effort.

SQ: You have said perceiving the content of The Mind of God “will forever change the content of your mind.” What has been the overall reader reaction?

JP:  The Mind of God refutes the notion that religion is important for understanding the truth about human existence and eternal existence. Therefore my readers are challenged to review their religious training ... It is by discovering, identifying and defining what the content of The Mind of God is and how it can be achieved that truth is validated.

SQ: How long did it take you to write this book and did you hire an editor?

JP: If Kristin had not died, this book would not exist. The actual effort to put it into book form took about 12 months. However the cause of it began over 20 years prior. I did not have an editor … My publisher PublishAmerica.com provided general “book editing” services.

SQ: What credentials were needed for PublishAmerica.com to accept it for publication?

JP: PublishAmerica.com is primarily looking for writers who have struggled and overcome obstacles or whose fictional stories depict this.

SQ: Is there a chance you would be willing to share a writing sample from the book, one you feel best exemplifies the book’s mind-expanding theme?

JP: It is by discovering the value of one’s God that expands a person’s mind … it is by discovering God is a naturally occurring phenomenon of human nature that the understanding of one’s own value depends. The section of my book that explains this is much too lengthy to include so let me say this instead: By logically laying out the hierarchy of human knowledge … I describe our purpose. I describe happiness, love and God. I identify that achieving eternal-life here on earth is proper for humans. I describe what the requirements are for gaining a proper existence here on earth ... and how this achievement naturally leads to happiness! This will expand the size of any “believer’s” mind!

SQ: In what ways do you market the book? Which ways have worked best?

JP: I have just begun (April 2004) to market my book … I have e-mailed my contact list. I am now setting up book signings, discussion groups and interviews with local (mid-Michigan) bookstores, news outlets and service groups.

SQ: Has your book sold well? Do you have a literary agent?

JP: My book has sold well to my personal contact list. I expect this will translate into a general acceptance by the larger market. I do not have a literary agent – perhaps later when book sales can justify costs.

SQ: How do you support yourself financially while writing?

JP: I am a retired General Motors Manufacturing Engineer.

SQ: Do you have other publications in the works? If so, I would love to hear descriptions!

JP: I am considering delving further into how the human mind acquires, stores and retrieves knowledge from the brain. This is the process of conceptualisation. I can see a need to present this process in a much more “layman” style.

SQ: A book on conceptualisation seems a natural next book for you. Is there an author that influences your writing? If so, who?

JP: The most influential writer of the 20^th century … in the science of philosophy is Ayn Rand. It is the concepts of Objectivism as developed by Ayn Rand that I use to integrate my knowledge of how proper human survival is achieved on earth.

SQ: Would you consider yourself a successful author / writer? Why or why not?

JP: I define success as having achieved the goal sought. I have achieved my goal of identifying what the nature and content of “the mind of God” is. By this standard I am a successful writer … sales of the book will measure another parameter of my success …

SQ: What advice can you give aspiring authors regarding publishing a first book?

JP: Be honest with yourself. Do you believe your book deserves publication? If the answer is yes, you cannot be stopped. If the answer is no, you have already stopped yourself.

SQ: Great points! Is there any information / websites you would like to add to this interview?

JP: Two. PublishAmerica.com and of course firstwriter.com.

SQ: Thank you James, for sharing your story with me and firstwriter.com – It will help many, including “first writers!”

JP: Thank you, Sara! For your readers who are interested in purchasing my book please direct them to http://www.publishamerica.com/shopping/shopquery.asp?ccode=1-4137-1078-6