Reading and Writing Addiction was able
to catch up with David Mint, Author of Why What We Use As Money Matters for an
interview. We are excited to share this
interesting interview today with our readers.
RAWA: When did you first discover that you were a writer?
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| Author David Mint |
DM: I had always seen writing as a task like any other until my
freshman year at Hastings College in Nebraska, when I was elected to the dorm
council and given the task of secretary, which meant taking notes and typing
them up as minutes. As dorm life on a small college campus can be quite
interesting, I found that I enjoyed weaving the backstories which lead to
certain rules violations committed by or accolades bestowed upon my dorm mates,
into the minutes. As many of the backstories and inside jokes were not fit for
official purposes, for a time I took to publishing two versions of the dorm
council meeting minutes, one that was sent to the College Administrators and
another that was taped to the back of bathroom stall doors for my dorm mates,
who appreciated the embellished version of the minutes, to enjoy while they
took care of business. After a time, I simply submitted the bathroom
stall version to the officials as I figured they are human and need a good
laugh as much as we do.
Since that time, I have rather looked forward to
writing and considered myself a writer.
RAWA: What is your favorite part of writing?
DM: There is a moment when an idea is bouncing around in your head,
begging to be put into words, no matter how crude or raw they might be, and it
finds its way to the tips of your fingers and onto the page. It is that
climactic moment, the release of the ideas into words and watching them take on
a life of their own, that is my favorite part of writing.
RAWA: What do you think is the most challenging aspect of writing?
DM: The most difficult part of writing is reviewing one’s own first
draft and realizing how horrid it sounds and the sheer number of spelling and
grammatical errors that slip by one in a moment of passionate writing.
RAWA: Tell us about your latest release.
DM: My latest release is a compilation of seven volumes which deal
with themes related to economic thought and philosophy. It is the fruit
of nearly three years of pondering simple questions like, “What is Money?” and
“What is Government?” and why the two are so deeply interrelated in our times.
My aim in compiling the volumes for public consumption is to challenge
widely held beliefs related to money and systems of government and to offer
readers the opportunity to understand the beliefs under which humankind labors
and offers palatable alternatives or at a minimum a rational basis for
accepting current monetary and governmental structures for what they truly are.
RAWA: How did you come up with the title of your book?
DM: “Why What We Use as Money
Matters” is the unifying theme behind the presentation of the book’s seemingly
stand-alone volumes. It sets the tone for the reader’s expectations with
regards to what they will learn by taking the time to read and ponder its
contents. Most of humankind will spend a great deal of their waking hours
in efforts to either attain or spend money without giving much thought to what
money is. This is a grave tragedy, for what we use as money does matter,
much more than any of us can imagine.
RAWA: Who are some of your favorite authors?
DM: In terms of classics, I have been enamored by the French authors
Voltaire and Victor Hugo. From the past century, Earnest Hemingway and
James A. Michener have been favorites. In terms of contemporaries, I like
Bill Bonner and Carlos Ruiz Zafón.
RAWA: What do you think has influenced your writing style the most?
DM: This may sound odd but my writing style has been influenced to a
large degree by the subject matter, which in the case of “Why What We Use as
Money Matters,” means that it takes on the form of a desperate academic
idealist wrestling with ideas that threaten to tear him apart limb by limb if
he does not prevail to expound upon them. In terms of format, it would be
to deny the obvious to fail to acknowledge the influence of blogging, where
ideas can be developed and accessed at will, on my personal style. The
compressed format and freedom of weblogs is revolutionizing the art of writing,
for better or worse remains to be seen.
RAWA: As a writer what is the accomplishment that you are most
proud of?
DM: If I have accomplished anything as a writer, may it be that future
generations may live out their days in peace and liberty. I usually shy
away from pride as we believe that pride is invariably followed by a fall from
grace. However, if indeed there is anything to be proud of, it is the
fact that I have been given both deep insights and have access to channels
through which to express and share them with the world.
RAWA: How did you get published?
DM: I have been fortunate to come of age as an author at the same time
that many avenues to self-publishing have been coming of age as well and have
chosen to go the indie route. From the beginning, I knew this book was to
be unique and that I needed to maintain as much control over the process as
possible. While it is not without its pitfalls, the benefits of indie
publishing have far outweighed any drawbacks.
RAWA: Do you have any advice for writers looking to get published?
DM: As any author who has been there will tell you, just do it.
There is not an author alive who wishes they would have waited to send
their work off, but a million who wish they had not waited so long to do so. Either submit your work to a slew of publishers or surround yourself with
great editors, graphic designers, formatters, and marketers if you are not
talented in those areas and go the indie route. But by all means, get
your work out there and promote it, as the “simple” act of getting your story
developed to the point that you are satisfied enough to present it has
tremendous personal value, far beyond the ultimate result.
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