iUniverse Blog

In the third part of this iUniverse Blog series from author John C. Woodcock, he attempts to explain the concept of his writing style.

“I begin by paying attention to certain events occurring in the world: i.e. events characterized by qualities of the unusual, the unfamiliar, the startling; all of which obviously involve my psychological participation, and then I open myself up to these phenomena sufficiently for them to penetrate my consciousness, so that I begin to think the thought of the phenomenon, distinct from my thinking about them This process is in effect an initiation into another form of consciousness, the consciousness of the phenomenon. This finally can form the basis for new action in the world, action that is not simply a repeat of the known past but instead carries the germ of a new future. These actions always took me away from the security of the familiar into the unknown future.”

iUniverse author John C. Woodcock writing method

“My method of writing is therefore an attempt to develop an art form that can demonstrate this process. I soften the boundaries of my ego and pay attention to unusual, unfamiliar, or even startling images that “arrive”. I take up a relationship with these visitors and am prepared to leave my present path to follow their hints. I record this process as it goes on. A kind of wandering therefore takes place in my writing as in my life….

In this way, I move from a memory, to a dream, to a reflection of an event in the world, to an etymological study of a word, to the words of another author. I do not concern myself with any separation between inner and outer, past and future, fact and fiction i.e. the usual categories of experience. The one constant is that all my writing springs out of the soil of immediate experience and so is real. I pay attention to detail, or hints that emerge freely from “within”, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. It takes a kind of surrender to psychic process in order to write this way, and a faith that I won’t fall merely into chaos, or madness. But this is far from certain!”

Look out for Part 4 of this iUniverse Blog series, in which John tells us more about the nature of his writing. To learn more about John, his books and his thinking, visit his website. To see all of his books visit the iUniverse Bookstore.