We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Nick Goss a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Nick thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Who is your hero and why? What lessons have you learned from them and how have they influenced your journey?
Steven Pressfield is my writing hero. Of all the voices out there for aspiring authors, his is the most profound. He wrote novels for almost forty years before his first book was published. That first book was a bestseller and went on to become a feature film. He has written across genres in both fiction and non-fiction, and spends his time sharing his wisdom with artists.
I’ve had the honor of interviewing him several times, and every time I walk away with some new perspective, new technique, or new resolution to finish a manuscript. He’s the ultimate ‘get it done’ mentor. He’s all about the journey of the artist, and facing Resistance – that ominous opposing force that keeps artists from their work – each day.
What I’ve learned from him is that the Resistance that tries to keep me from writing today, as a new writer, never goes away. After years of authorship, Pressfield faces the same pernicious daily Resistance to the work of writing that I do as a young author.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
When my son was 8 years old, he asked that we skip our nightly routine of reading before bed. “Instead of reading a story,” he said, “let’s make one up together.” What followed was a three week romp through our collective imaginations creating characters, worlds, plot lines, etc. Each night we created a new world for our hero to journey through. The end result was a Middle Grade Fantasy Series entitled “The Traveler’s League”.
Since then we have created a podcast where we read stories written by other kids, a youtube channel where we have a variety of adventures together, and we continue writing books.
My daughter has co-authored her own fantasy tale for children called, “The Mermicorn” – It was completely created and plotted by her! I only wrote it out for her and self-published it.
I’ve written some young adult fantasy, a non-fiction piece about the spiritual dangers of technology, and am currently working on a Christmas book.
My brother and I started a YouTube channel called “The Gosslings” where we interview other authors, mostly self-published.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My mission is to restore wholesome, character-building adventure in stories for kids – but also for adults. There is a movement among publishers to promote themes that are harmful and controversial. The great books, the classics, are about redeemable characters, sweeping morale themes, hope, and the underdog coming out on top. My mission is to write books worthy of the human soul, and nourishing to it as well.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect is knowing that a person has enjoyed my writing so much that instead of giving my book to a friend, they buy another copy for them. LOL
Contact Info:
- Website: http://nickgossl.com/
- Youtube: KidVentrues
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