Interview with Praying Medic: 'I was surprised at how inexpensive it is to self-publish'

Praying Medic is a paramedic and author living in Phoenix, Arizona. Since 2009, he has written about the miracles God has done through his medical practice. He is married to his best friend and business partner. His first book Divine Healing Made Simple was published in December of 2013. 

His life goal is to teach people to live as ambassadors of God's kingdom. His books and articles are intended to inspire, challenge and if necessary, provoke readers into a deeper relationship with God. 

If you're interested in connecting with him outside of Amazon, he has a personal blog http://prayingmedic.com/ where he writes about the miraculous. You can contact him there.

Q: Welcome to The Writer's Life!  Now that your book has been published, we’d love to find out more about the process.  Can we begin by having you take us at

the beginning?  Where did you come up with the idea to write your book?

Unlike most writers, I never had an interest in being a published author, but over a two year period I wrote about 30 articles on the subject of healing. The articles helped people understand healing better, and they provided answers to some of the questions people have about how healing works. A number of friends told me that more people would benefit from the information I shared if I wrote a book, so I spent about a year turning the articles into a book manuscript.

Q: How hard was it to write a book like this and do you have any tips that you could pass on which would make the journey easier for other writers?

I used an unconventional approach to write my book, but it’s one that has been used successfully by other authors. I post articles and stories on my Facebook page and I ask a lot of discussion questions. From the feedback I receive, I refine the articles which eventually become the basis for the chapter of a book. I didn’t know it at the time, but this approach to book writing has become known as “crowdsourcing.”

Crowdsourcing is a great way to write books if you lack the inspiration and time to do all the writing yourself. It also gives readers a broad perspective on the subject because it takes in the views and experiences of a large group of people. From what I’ve gathered from discussion questions and articles I have right now, I’m well on my way to having several more books written.

Q: Who is your publisher and how did you find them or did you self-publish?

I decided to self-publish my first book, and because I knew I would be publishing more books down the road I created my own publishing company called Inkity Press. In addition to publishing my own books, I’m assisting friends who want to self-publish their books.

Q: Is there anything that surprised you about getting your first book published?

I was surprised at how inexpensive it is to self-publish a book. There are a number of companies that offer self-publishing services, but Amazon made the process pretty straight-forward and dirt cheap. They offer professional design services for authors who don’t have access to their own graphic designer and their rates are pretty reasonable. They also have free design services built into their website if you don’t mind doing some of the work yourself. I would encourage authors to check out the Amazon’s self-publishing services.

Q: What other books (if any) are you working on and when will they be published?

My next book is a collection of personal stories about the supernatural work of God in my life. The title is “My Top 100 Craziest Adventures with God. It should be out late this summer.

I’m also working on a book titled: Seeing in the Spirit Made Simple that should be out in the fall.

I’m working on a fourth book titled: Traveling in the Spirit Made Simple. I hope to have it out by the end of 2014.

I began posting a series of fictional stories on spiritual warfare on Facebook that received rave reviews from my friends. They immediately demanded a novel be written from the stories. That book will likely be my first project for 2015.

Q: What’s your favorite place to hang out online?

I’m the world’s biggest Facebook junkie and there is no treatment plan in my future. When I’m not at work and not writing – that’s where you can find me.

Q: Finally, what message (if any) are you trying to get across with your book?

The main message of my book is that anyone can operate in supernatural healing, regardless of their education, social status, or spiritual background and that healing can be done in any type of setting.

  

Q: Thank you again for this interview!  Do you have any final words?

I just want to thank you for giving me the opportunity to share what I’ve learned with your blog readers. If anyone is interested in connecting with me or reading my articles, you can reach me through my personal blog: http://prayingmedic.com/