Along the Way
Lately a lot of people have been asking what I'm up to, and why they haven't heard from me for a while, and why I haven't blogged in a long time, and what I'm working on next. Excellent questions, friends. There's one answer to all four questions. My next project is one I'm very excited about. It's helping Martin Sheen and Emilio Estevez write their father-son memoir about family, fatherhood, and faith, set against the backdrops of Hollywood and northern Spain. At the moment it's titled Along the Way. You can read a brief article about the book here.
Most of you probably know Martin Sheen from Apocalypse Now and The West Wing (among other films) and Emilio Estevez from The Breakfast Club and The Mighty Ducks trilogy(among other films, including Bobby, which he wrote and directed). They've recently made a new film together called The Way which was filmed along the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain.
As soon as you have a chance to see this movie, run—do not walk!—to the theater. It's the story of a father who scatters his estranged son's ashes along the Camino after his son dies on his first day trekking. If that sounds like a downer it's really not, because it's also about the odd assortment of people he befriends how he walks and how they change his life. The story is absolutely inspiring and the cinematography is absolutely stunning. You'll want to book a ticket to northern Spain and hit the path by the time it's done.
Some of you may remember that both Martin Sheen (page 268) and Apocalypse Now (323) were both named in The Possibility of Everything, which is a very odd coincidence. (It's not like I stick random actor's names in all my books.) This was one of just several odd coincidences that told me that this should be my next book project to work on. Who would have thought? Definitely not me.
The biggest coincidence of all was this: after The Possibility of Everything came out to excellent reviews and not-so-earthshattering sales, and after I'd spent about six months and umpteen dollars (of my own) to market and promote it to only marginal success, I was completely and profoundly exhausted. I knew I'd write another book eventually--I mean, that's what writers do, or else we feel useless and unworthy--but I just could not imagine hauling my butt back to the computer and starting this all over again. And even that assumed I had another book idea to jump on, which I didn't. I honestly didn't know what I'd do next, and the growing stack of bills on our kitchen counter said I'd better come up with an idea fast. So I made a list--I know it sounds simplistic, but it's true--of what I thought I was good at.
Here's what I came up with 1) Interviewing people; 2) Helping other people find their stories; and 3) Public speaking. I figured this meant I should either go back into teaching or become a census worker who breaks into spontaneous lectures.
But then, not even two days later, a phone call came in asking if I was interested in working on this book. Which would require hours of interviewing. And helping two people find both their individual and shared stories. Good example of sticking an Intention Stick into the air and attracting something right to it, eh?
Sometimes the signs are unmistakable. So even though this is wildly different from any book I've done before, I'm on board. Truly, it's because this is so different from any book I've done before that I wanted to do it. I welcome the challenge, and I'm always up for learning something new. And so far, it's been an enormously interesting ride. These two men are, without contest, two of the nicest guys in the world. With an incredible story to tell.
And that's all I'm saying until the book comes out.
Father's Day 2012. Or sooner. I'm planning to write like the wind.
Happy February to all,
Hope
Most of you probably know Martin Sheen from Apocalypse Now and The West Wing (among other films) and Emilio Estevez from The Breakfast Club and The Mighty Ducks trilogy(among other films, including Bobby, which he wrote and directed). They've recently made a new film together called The Way which was filmed along the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain.
As soon as you have a chance to see this movie, run—do not walk!—to the theater. It's the story of a father who scatters his estranged son's ashes along the Camino after his son dies on his first day trekking. If that sounds like a downer it's really not, because it's also about the odd assortment of people he befriends how he walks and how they change his life. The story is absolutely inspiring and the cinematography is absolutely stunning. You'll want to book a ticket to northern Spain and hit the path by the time it's done.
Some of you may remember that both Martin Sheen (page 268) and Apocalypse Now (323) were both named in The Possibility of Everything, which is a very odd coincidence. (It's not like I stick random actor's names in all my books.) This was one of just several odd coincidences that told me that this should be my next book project to work on. Who would have thought? Definitely not me.
The biggest coincidence of all was this: after The Possibility of Everything came out to excellent reviews and not-so-earthshattering sales, and after I'd spent about six months and umpteen dollars (of my own) to market and promote it to only marginal success, I was completely and profoundly exhausted. I knew I'd write another book eventually--I mean, that's what writers do, or else we feel useless and unworthy--but I just could not imagine hauling my butt back to the computer and starting this all over again. And even that assumed I had another book idea to jump on, which I didn't. I honestly didn't know what I'd do next, and the growing stack of bills on our kitchen counter said I'd better come up with an idea fast. So I made a list--I know it sounds simplistic, but it's true--of what I thought I was good at.
Here's what I came up with 1) Interviewing people; 2) Helping other people find their stories; and 3) Public speaking. I figured this meant I should either go back into teaching or become a census worker who breaks into spontaneous lectures.
But then, not even two days later, a phone call came in asking if I was interested in working on this book. Which would require hours of interviewing. And helping two people find both their individual and shared stories. Good example of sticking an Intention Stick into the air and attracting something right to it, eh?
Sometimes the signs are unmistakable. So even though this is wildly different from any book I've done before, I'm on board. Truly, it's because this is so different from any book I've done before that I wanted to do it. I welcome the challenge, and I'm always up for learning something new. And so far, it's been an enormously interesting ride. These two men are, without contest, two of the nicest guys in the world. With an incredible story to tell.
And that's all I'm saying until the book comes out.
Father's Day 2012. Or sooner. I'm planning to write like the wind.
Happy February to all,
Hope
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