I know there are a handful of aspiring writers like me who come to this page. I will give a peek preview and update of my present project.
Bryan Rogers, PA-C, went to Yemen to save the children … he left Yemen to save the world.
It usually takes me about six months to write a book. The major exception was my nonfiction book, Butterflies in the Belfry, which took ten years of research and at least two of writing. With each writing project, I try my best to hone my skills to a new level. I do this through the hard work of attending workshops, reading many well-written books, classes, and working with editors. I hope to make my next book, (working title) The Mills of God; A Yemeni Journey, my best so far. So far, I have spent ten months on this book and am in the middle of my twenty-first re-write. I’m feeling really good about it.
Last January I entered an early version of manuscript into the Pacific Northwest Writers Contest. It is one of the largest and most prestigious contest for unpublished works. Winners just announced. No, I did not win. However, the editors’ comments were very encouraging, giving me some hope that this book could be eventually picked up by a major publisher. The other thing this feedback gave me, was the motivation to do one more rewrite as I thought I was done at twenty. I am taking the advice of the editors seriously.
My next step is turning the manuscript over to professional editors. My original goal was to have the book on the market by Christmas. I’m now doubtful I can meet that deadline, but early next year will be reasonable.
People write for different reasons. I have a passion to write. Writing this book literally saved my life during the dark days of last winter. I got up in the bleak, rainy mornings and went to my sauna. There I spent two to three hours hashing out the story in my mind and key board. I lived in Yemen with my imagination, so much so, that when I left the heat of my sauna and stepped into the wet cold air of the Pacific Northwest, I was always jolted back into reality. It kept me sane when I was bound up alone in my house for months.
Like any artist, my success is measured in the eyes and mind of the consumer. If I had to choose between getting a million dollars for a book (and no one reads it) or getting a million people to read it and not one dollar, I would choose the latter. I think painters and singers would do the same. In a perfect world I would get enough money in return to cover the costs.
The Sneak Preview
This book is best classified in the genre of a thriller, but an “upscale” thriller. What I mean is a thriller with thoughtful considerations of serious social issues. Most of the story takes place in Yemen and during a round-the-world chase on the high seas. I wish I could say more … but just wait and stay tuned. I will add one more hint. The term, “The Mills of God” first appeared in Greek as, “The mills of God grind slowly.” It was meant to portray the idea that we need to be patient, that God’s retribution will eventually be realized upon the unjust. It was also used by Christians, based on the verse in Deuteronomy 32:35:
Vengeance is Mine, and recompense;
Their foot shall slip in due time;
For the day of their calamity is at hand,
And the things to come hasten upon them.
The book takes the reader on an inspiring and intimate journey through war-torn Yemen and ruminates over the issues that create terrorism and result from it. You will smell Yemen, feel it between your toes, taste it in your drink, and hold it with your heart.
Mike Jones
J. Michael Jones 