What do you see as the major themes on our planet right now?
Why Write Fiction?
You’d think a clinical psychologist would know why people write fiction. It’s fiction! What’s to ask? Probably a great deal.
The fact is I don’t know why people write fiction but I can speculate. I suppose there are some general reasons which may apply to most art forms. But I’ll save you the meanderings which you might find interesting or not at all interesting. Let me tell you why I think I write fiction.
At Duke they awarded me a doctoral degree after my studies and what I had done proved to them I had a grasp of the human mind and behavior. I’m trying not to laugh because my education continued far beyond my graduate school years. I now believe that all such endeavors are forever a work in progress. Psychology is the study of human and animal behavior—Period. That’’s a big door to walk through. Contrast it with psychiatry which is the study of mental illness, emotional disturbance and abnormal behavior.
Creating a Blog
Definitions can be endless. The longer I look at life, the more I struggle with the meaning of behavior and, I believe, concerning mental illness, we need a wholesale reexamination. and redefinition. This blog is entitled Cusp of Reality because I have found that reality is ephemeral. We desperately grasp at it to retain our stability. It requires ongoing examination and it is clear humankind is constantly confronted with all forms of instability and change.
Exploring a Changing World
As a function of my personality I am always fascinated by possibilities and work to contain the exploration of them and to maintain some order. It appears we are currently entering another dangerous period of world instability related to climate change, demographic dangers and what may be the end of capitalism. But to me one thing has stood out and that is that we don’t focus enough on the empowerment of women. It almost seems it is dismissed as simply a function of the contraceptive pill. As women gained control of their fertility their horizons expanded.
Maybe there’s more to it. Leslie White spoke of the extrasomatic stream which is culture. At this moment there is broad based cultural change underway related to the role of women. Recognition of this fact and my regard for the potential impact of the end to the subjugation of women led me to generate a “what if”. My personality type is known for searching possibilities and I love the process although it must be restrained.
Extraordinary Potential in Women
The bottom line is that I could not resist telling a story about women leading us not just to a stable and productive future but possibly to an unexpected transformation. Women are generative and hold so much potential in their hands. In their world there are untold benefits. Men certainly make their contributions but their nature requires restraint.
Looking at earth and the challenges we face I wondered what might happen if there really was an earth goddess called Gaia who was working to safeguard our future. She found us intriguing and thought we held potential. So she decided to guard and even guide our future.
Beyond Fundamental Conflict
In history gods and goddesses were often reflections of facets of human behavior. They hurled thunderbolts, fought with one another and on an on. But what if there was a process with meaning beyond earth as we know it. There is a universe out there and it is reflected in the here and now but also may have much more meaning related to a future we might only imagine.
Birth of the Story
An idea led to characters being born. They appeared and the story of Gaia’s Majesty opened. Frequently it seemed ever so far beyond my grasp or my control. What started as a story and probably one book grew into a trilogy. I thought that ended it but now a fourth book is materializing.
Bottom line. Why do I write? I write because I explore and while I am in my later years the exploration does not end. I continue to mine parts of myself and to scan the world. Human existence comes in waves both personally and collectively. We seem to be at the end of a wave and the next phase relates much more to what women will bring to our future. I cannot resist telling a story reflective of these possibilities.
Where do you think women will lead us?