February 15, 2014 on coffeeatmidnightdesigns)
As a self-styled eccentric recluse I typically avoid overt self-promotion and choose instead to cultivate a deliberate air of mystery. This is a fancy way of saying that I never know what to say about myself, my work, my future projects, or any of the other things that proactive pagan-flavored authors/creators are supposed to do. I’m also really busy making ends meet and I have to manage a spectrum of chronic illness symptoms that eat up a lot of focus. BUT if I’m going to be serious about this new direction I want my work to take then I’m gonna have to get comfortable with the idea of talking about myself, my work, my future projects, and other proactive topics.
Q: You! Tell me about you!!
A: That’s not a question but alright – I’m 32, native Coloradan, long-time Utah resident that is currently employed by a medical library as an assistant to a special collections project and by a marketing agency as a copywriter/content creator. I got my undergraduate degree from the University of Utah and I’d love to go to grad school if I ever pay off my student loans and make up my mind what I’d like to study. My interior decorating aesthetic is bibliophilic opium den.
Q: You wrote Walking the Heartroad; what’s that about?
A: Walking the Heartroad was a small book I wrote in 2007 and self-published in 2008. It specifically addresses the devotional path inherent to spirit work and other service-oriented spiritual paths that feature strong connections to numinous personalities (Goddesses, Gods, spirits, etc). The book was written as an offering to my Gods. Though a number of people have found the book helpful and inspirational its primary orientation has always been as an offering.
Q: Cool! Lemme just go look for it on Amazon….YIKES!
A: Yes, I know. I found out just a few weeks ago that people (or sales bots) were asking $75 for this book. Though I’d never tell you what you should or shouldn’t do with your own money, I would suggest that you not spend $75 dollars just to get a copy. A paperback copy can be purchased through Lulu.com for $8.99. If you want to get a paper copy, I’d suggest getting it right here: http://www.lulu.com/us/en/shop/silence-maestas/walking-the-heartroad/paperback/product-4308209.html
At the beginning of the year I was pushed to release a Kindle version of the book; finding out that sales bots were trying to sell it for exceptional prices just motivated me further to prepare an electronic edition. I’m very new to the world of Kindle publishing and I have a great deal to learn. The Kindle edition has everything the paper copy has (sans a few unauthorized additions that the formatting editor put in without my knowledge) along with a preview of the book I’m currently preparing.
Q: Ooo, new book? Tell me about that!
A: This new book is tentatively titled Further Along the Heartroad and it will focus on the things that devotional practitioners experience as their practice extends into the long-term. I’ve been working on a large chapter about the pitfalls and obstacles of the devotional path and what can be done to identify and correct them. There’ll be a chapter on parting ways from one’s sacred Beloved and stuff on solitude, mysticism, and lots of other things. It’ll be considerably different than the initial Heartroad book. It’ll be a lot longer for one thing and it won’t be constrained to spirit workers and other service-oriented types. I’m aiming to have it completed by the end of this calendar year and to have it ready for release in the first quarter of 2015.
Q: I was at your PCon session and you said something about another book. What’s that one about?
A: Put simply, that book will be an expansion of the material I shared in my session. As I finished preparing the material I realized that I probably had a book on my hands. I’ve taken some steps to safeguard the material until it’s ready for publication. Exactly when that will take place I’m not sure. Will it be exactly what the session was? No; the session’s material will be the foundation that I’ll build the rest of the book on. I had to really pare the session down so that it would fit in the allotted time so there were several things that I didn’t get to talk about. Those excised subjects will go into the book along with a bunch of related topics. I’ve got a couple publishing options but until there’s more of this book actually written I can’t tell you anything more concrete about it or its future. I’ll use this blog to share developments.
The Road, the Walker, and What Comes Next 