Author Interview – Brian Cormack Carr
How do you feel about self-publishing? Very positive indeed. I think it’s such an exciting innovation. I know there’s some stigma still attached to it, and that when some people hear “self-publishing” they think “vanity publishing” and have visions of boxes and boxes of unsold books cluttering up their garage! But with digital publishing and print-on-demand options, that really can be a thing of the past. And why wait until a publisher gives you “permission” to publish your work? Many great writers had their work regularly rejected by publishers before making it big. If you’re a writer and want to be read, life’s too short to wait for someone else’s permission. It’s possible to get your work out there. I think the writers who are serious about it will do it. But it’s not the soft option – it’s still hard work. And of course, you have to figure out and manage the process yourself, which in itself can be a challenge. But it’s a challenge that’s so worth it! I’ve written about the process of writing and self-publishing on my blog: http://www.cormackcarr.com/2013/06/16/how-i-wrote-and-self-published-my-first-book-part-1/
Do you find the time to read? I make the time to read. I think it’s vital for writers; it helps remind us of what good writing looks like! In fact, I often have several (too many) books on the go at once.
What is your favorite quote, by whom, and why? I love the W.H.Auden quote: ““You owe it to all of us to get on with what you‘re good at”. That sums up my philosophy really. For better or worse, here we are. The gift we can give back to life is what we’re good at, whether it’s writing, wallpapering, studying chemistry or doing accounts. There’s something we can do in a way that’s not quite like anyone else. How To Find Your Vital Vocation (http://www.viewbook.at/vitalvocation) – my first book – is about helping people to find out what that is.
When did you first know you could be a writer? I don’t really remember ever not being a writer, but I think I first realised that other people would want to read my work when I was at school, and teachers and other pupils said they enjoyed reading my stories.
What inspired you to write your first book? I wanted to share what I’d learned about finding and building an “ideal career” with other people. I’d moved from work that made me unhappy to work that made me very happy indeed, and I discovered that the process itself was simple. That’s not to downplay how difficult things are out there in terms of the employment market, of course. But even given those difficulties, there are ways to maximise your chances of finding and getting your dream job, and my book outlines how to do this. I started writing a blog to promote my career coaching practice, and that developed into a very successful online membership site for job-hunters and career-changers, and then into my first book – How To Find Your Vital Vocation (http://www.viewbook.at/vitalvocation).
Did writing this book teach you anything and what was it? Yes – get started. In fact, start before you’re ready. I realised I could wait around for years waiting until I had the confidence to write my first book. Then I realised that writing that book would be the thing that would give me confidence, and I got on with it!
Can you share a little of your current work with us? I’d be glad to – in fact, you can download quite a substantial extract of my first book – How To Find Your Vital Vocation – from my website: http://vitalvocation.com/vital-vocation-the-book-download-your-free-sample/
How did you come up with the title? The book is based on the premise that we all have a “calling” – a voice inside us that’s telling us what we’re most suited to do. That suggested “vocation” to me, and I came up with “vital” because when we find that calling, it makes us fell alive. I actually used the title for a website first – http://www.vitalvocation.com – which was originally an online coaching membership site for job-hunters and career-changers. Then I turned it into a book.
Who designed the cover? The cover was designed by Jane Dixon Smith of JD Smith Design. She did a terrific job. She also handled all my interior formatting, and she was endlessly patient with me as I muddled my way through my first self-published book. Some writers worry that hiring a professional cover designer will stop them from having an influence on the look of their own book, but the opposite is true. Jane and I generated some options between us, and I narrowed things down to a couple of favourite ideas for her to work up. I had the final say – along with some help from my blog readers, who voted on which cover option they liked best.
Who is your publisher? I am – I’ve set up my own imprint, Albus Press, which is the vehicle through which I publish How To Find Your Vital Vocation (http://www.viewbook.at/vitalvocation). I’ll publish more under this imprint, and who knows – maybe one day I’ll publish other writers too.
Ready to choose or change your job? Stuck in work you hate? Think the career of your dreams is beyond your reach?
IT’S NEVER TOO LATE TO FIND YOUR VITAL VOCATION
If you don’t love your work, you deserve better – and with this book at your side, you can get it. A lively and potentially life-changing guide,How To Find Your Vital Vocation sets out a simple-to-follow yet profoundly effective process that will take you step-by-step from wherever you are now to a working life based on your most cherished dreams.
LEARN HOW TO:
- Hear the inner call that’s telling you what will make you truly happy
- Rediscover your gifts and use them to build a perfectly-tailored career
- Identify and overcome the obstacles that stand between you and your ideal work
- Create powerful networks to help you find great jobs that are never advertised
- Find out what it takes to become an entrepreneur of the future
- Maximise the impact of your job applications
- Ace every interview
- Attain reward levels that will help you thrive – even in this tough economy!
Put yourself in charge of your career – once and for all. Packed with valuable insights, powerful exercises and illuminating self-coaching questions, How To Find Your Vital Vocation will help you chart a practical path to a fun and fulfilling livelihood. In this comprehensive resource, expert career coach Brian Cormack Carr shows you how to find your passion and purpose and finally start doing the work you were born to do.
WHAT THEY’RE SAYING:
“Too many of us have gone about finding our livelihood in a haphazard way. Before long, we become a statistic in a job dissatisfaction survey. Happily, it doesn’t have to be that way and Brian Cormack Carr proves it. If you think that work should be about more – much more – than just a way to pay your bills, this book is the roadmap you’ve been looking for. Work with How To Find Your Vital Vocation for a short time and you’ll be working at your real work for a long time.”
~ BARBARA J. WINTER Bestselling author of Making a Living Without a Job
“Warm, witty and wise. I highly recommend this book. Brian knows his stuff and How To Find Your Vital Vocation is a breath of fresh air.”
~ GRACE OWEN Executive coach and author of The Career Itch
“I appreciated the step-by-step nature of Vital Vocation. It made finding a new career that much easier, and I’m still amazed at how well it helped me clarify what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.”
~ DAVID Member of the Vital Vocation Online Coaching Programme
“Vital Vocation helped me focus after I had spent too long panicking and going nowhere. Now my part-time hobby has grown to a full-time occupation and I’ve finally given up the day job that was making me sad!”
~ STEVEN Member of the Vital Vocation Online Coaching Programme
Buy Now @ Amazon & Smashwords
Genre – NonFiction / Careers
Rating – G
More details about the author
Connect with Brian Cormack Carr on Facebook & Twitter
Website http://vitalvocation.com/
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