Eckhart Aurelius Hughes AMA (Ask Me Anything)

[Eckhart Aurelius Hughes]

Your book is so profound. It just contains one profound paragraph after another. And I can just imagine the mental fatigue that you would go through writing those. So, how do you do it? How do you avoid getting mental fatigue?

Thank you so much for your kind words!

It took me over 5 years to write the book.

I would compare it to running a marathon-sized distance. A marathon is about 26 miles. In one day, it would be very fatiguing. But over 5 years, it would only be 5 miles a year. That is less than a half a mile per month. It would be less than an 1/8th of a mile per day on average. That's nearly nothing.

With that said, I can exhaust and fatigue myself mentally without writing a word. I can do it just sitting quietly on my porch drinking seltzer water. And I do sometimes.

I think I like it. I workout in the gym everyday too. I enjoy working out in the gym, or mentally on the computer or some other project, until I'm fatigued. I enjoy challenges. I enjoy exercising both body and mind such as by testing myself by lifting ever-higher amounts of weights in the gym until failure or pushing myself to endure ever more levels of discomfort or endure ever-higher levels of pain. I do it for one thing as an exercise to increase my physical limits (both mental and non-mental) gradually over time. But I also do it because I enjoy facing the challenges in the present and pushing myself to my limit in the present. Even if I knew I was going to die tomorrow, I'd probably still lift weights today; it might even motivate me to work out harder and longer to hit new PRs in the gym since it would be last chance.

I love boxing, for example, and regularly spar with my friend. Win or lose, I love going out there with the gloves and doing my best at something so challenging and fatiguing. There is something I find so beautiful about pushing one's body and mind towards their absolute limits Part of it, I think, is that those limits always seem to be surprising more than we think. When we go as far as we can, I think we tend to be surprised how incredibly far we can go. When we genuinely do our true best, I think we tend to find our best is shockingly much better than we had thought.

If anything, when it comes to these kinds of things, I do them and I like doing them not despite them being fatiguing or painful, but rather because they are.


Thank you for your thought-provoking question!

[Tori_J]

Thank you for your response. However, even your response brings up more questions. For instance, if it took you five years to write this book, how were you able to get yourself into "the zone" when you wanted to start writing?

I mean, for instance, I've got ADHD(though I haven't been medically diagnosed but all the signs are there). So for someone like me, it can be hard to get into "the zone". So how do you do it? How do you just sit, pick up your writing materials and get into that headspace and start writing such profound words?

[AkshiP]

I have a simple question for you. What was your childhood like?

[Tori_J]

Also, when you get into that headspace, how do you get out of it? Do you just keep writing till you get writer's block or do you set a time when you have to stop writing? Also, was there a time when you didn't write for a while and then came back like a month later to continue? If there was, how we're you able to adjust to the tone again, did you have to read you entire book again? My apologies for the many questions.

[Eckhart Aurelius Hughes]

Thank you for your response. However, even your response brings up more questions. For instance, if it took you five years to write this book, how were you able to get yourself into "the zone" when you wanted to start writing?

Typically, I don't go out of my way to put myself in the zone. It happens on its own, which is actually more troublesome than helpful in most senses.

Usually when I write a lot, it's somewhat accidental, and it's instead of doing something that I feel would be more productive and/or that is more time-sensitive. Maybe there is dishes in the sink or important work emails to answer, and in any case my to-do list is always a mile long, but sometimes I procrastinate on all that because I suddenly get inspired to write.

I mean, for instance, I've got ADHD(though I haven't been medically diagnosed but all the signs are there). So for someone like me, it can be hard to get into "the zone". So how do you do it? How do you just sit, pick up your writing materials and get into that headspace and start writing such profound words?

When I do want to commit to working on a book, one thing that helps me get back in the zone is proofreading and editing what I already wrote. So for instance if I have writer's block regarding what to put on the next page, I will re-read all the pages I already wrote, making edits and additions along the way. I might write what would be Chapter 1-5, then go back proofread it and add a few chapters in between 1-2 and what was 3-5. In fact, even when I was getting close to sending the book to be published, I struggled most with the fact that every time I proofread it cover-to-cover, I would end up making significant additions, thereby requiring more proofreading and getting me stuck in an endless loop. I eventually I made a promise to never proofread it again. So I have actually never read the current version of the book from cover-to-cover.

Similarly, I like journaling, so if I am looking for inspiration to write in general, I re-read old entries in my journals.

I find getting in the zone for creative work (e.g. writing, computer programming, etc.) is much like falling asleep at night. Trying to do it acts as a roadblock. It often happens on its own. But if you want to motivate it to happen for some reason, you kind of have to trick yourself into falling into it accidentally. For instance, if I really want to fall asleep, I won't lay in bed and just grimace and groan in effort to try real hard to sleep; that would wake me up more. Instead, I'll do my best to put my desire to sleep out of mind, and instead read in bed. Then when I'm 'trying to read' so to speak, I get groggy and pass out. That works out well as long as I don't drop my Kindle on my face as I doze off, but unfortunately my Kindle falling on my face does happen often.

It's like using reverse psychology on yourself.

Anecdotally, many people say it works for finding car keys too. They say, stop looking and then you find them.


Another aspect of the comparison to sleep with getting in the zone for work/creativity is that it highlights the importance of staying in the zone (i.e. not getting woken up) once you get there (i.e. once you have fallen asleep). For example, I always keep my phone on silent; No ringer, no vibration. That's 24/7 for me. It's because a 2-minute phone call that wakes me from my sleep would end up causing me to lose at least 10-15 of minutes sleep in terms of the time it takes me to fall back asleep if I can at all. That's at best. It may steal hours of sleep from me when it tears me out of the zone/sleep if I cannot fall back asleep. The same goes for creative work. By taking me from the zone, a 2-minute phone call would steal at least 10-20 minutes of productivity from me and possibly steal hours of productivity from me or more. It could cause me to lose the trains of thought I had going forever, like a half-dreamt dream that disappeared when you were awoken by a ringer or someone at the door, never to be finished, only forgotten. When it comes to sleep and getting in the zone for thoughtful work such as writing, once you are in the zone, it only takes one tiny brief interruption or disturbance to steal hours or worse.

[Sheilaread]

Hi
First, I think the lie is that you are a vegetarian!!

Now onto my question…you did say anything…right?
I’ve asked many people this and literally keep getting ignored.

On instagram, up on the top, above the days feed, there are videos/stories that are only available for 24 hours.
They sit up at the very top, in little circles.
How do we make those stories/videos?
I can make a short video that goes on my IG wall. You can search and see mine begging for help on this very topic.
I want to create those 24 hour videos. But how?

Thank you for helping, if you happen to know how. It’s ok if you don’t know.

I’m attempting to write a book and create a YouTube channel, to try to eventually bring in money, but I need to create content.

Thank you again, if you are able to help.

Have a good week

[Shillah Andeso]

I've been thinking about writing a book but something tells me I'm not fit to be an author. How do you know that you have a potential to write?

[trevorlando]

This is a great idea for a forum topic! I have been curious about your writing process, but I can see that this has already been discussed in other responses. How did it feel to put this book out? Did it feel like a burden to put this book out or was it a great feeling to share your ideas with the readers of the world? I can't wait to get to the point that you are at, where all of the hard work pays off and you finally have a hardcover copy of your own writing in your hands.

[Eckhart Aurelius Hughes]

On instagram, up on the top, above the days feed, there are videos/stories that are only available for 24 hours.
They sit up at the very top, in little circles.
How do we make those stories/videos?
I can make a short video that goes on my IG wall. You can search and see mine begging for help on this very topic.
I want to create those 24 hour videos. But how?

I believe what you mean is what Instagram calls "Stories". When clicking the new post button ( usually a + sign ) on the mobile app, you then are given the choice of what kind of new post to make. From there, you would want to choose "Story".

Stories were basically Instagram & Facebook's way of copying Snapchat.

[Alex Reeves]

I must say that your last statement In It together, "I love you", solidified all your ideas and preaching about inner peace. If one is peaceful within himself, he'll be able to appreciate the life around him, to appreciate people who heed to his voice. You messages really touched me, and since you got motivation from Burn Zones, I'll try to read that book too. Good day.

I am so glad it resonated with you. Thank you for kind words!

You're very welcome sir.

[Eckhart Aurelius Hughes]

I have a simple question for you. What was your childhood like?

I could write several books detailing the day-to-day events of my childhood to the best of my memory, but I think it would be a bit boring for readers.

To sum it up, let me highlight the aspects of it I think that are uncommon and influenced the things about me that are most uncommon:

1. Both my parents worked for most of my childhood. My mom was a swim coach, and my younger siblings were on the swim team but I wasn't. So I spent a lot of time home alone as a child, starting at a young age and going straight through all my teenage years.[/b] It didn't dawn on me that it wasn't a typical and how it might have affected my personality until I was already an adult.

2. My older sisters had both started college before I even started high school, and they knew I liked philosophy. When I was still in middle school, my sisters would bring home and give me their old college textbooks, if they had anything to do with philosophy or any kind of science that might interest me (e.g. cosmology). To me, it seems now like a chicken-and-egg situation. Did my sisters give me philosophy and science books because I like learning about philosophy and science, or did I become interested in philosophy and science because my sisters gave me books about it?

3. My dad worked on computers in IT for an insurance company. So I had access to cutting edge computers at home throughout my whole childhood. That is particularly in terms of internet access, which was just barely starting to catch on when I was young. We had internet at home at time when the vast majority of families in the USA did not. Nowadays it's normal for kids to grow up with internet access and knowing technology very well. Back then it was atypical. I was making HTML websites in my free time before I was even a teenager, and this was back in the 90s. I was able to teach myself anything I wanted online at very early age, and I was able to do it back when most other people either didn't have that access or didn't know how to use the way I did. This also meant that I had free range on that too because it was before most parents and teachers and such knew how powerful the internet and learned to supervise and restrict access to it.

4. For whatever reason, I was kind of a rebellious and troublesome child. A rule-breaker.

[Eckhart Aurelius Hughes]

Also, when you get into that headspace, how do you get out of it? Do you just keep writing till you get writer's block or do you set a time when you have to stop writing?

Yes, I would write until I get writer's block or was interrupted by something. I do have two young kids, so I can only reasonably limit interruptions so much. An interruption could be something like my alarm going off because it was time to pick up the kids from school.

Also, was there a time when you didn't write for a while and then came back like a month later to continue? If there was, how we're you able to adjust to the tone again, did you have to read you entire book again? My apologies for the many questions.

Re-reading the partially written book definitely helps get back in the headspace. Also, several times I started over after having written half the book. So a few times I had written at least several chapters, and then scrapped it all, and re-started.

Proofreading it and making changes or additions or subtractions at different times from different headspace helps me see it from different perspectives and make a book that will appeal to many different readers.

[Eckhart Aurelius Hughes]

I've been thinking about writing a book but something tells me I'm not fit to be an author. How do you know that you have a potential to write?

For non-fiction writing, if you have something to say, then say it.

You could go to school for 50 years and learn all the rules from highly accredited teachers. But if you have nothing worthwhile to say, it doesn't matter how well you say it. If you have something worthwhile to say, you can get editors and polishers to edit and polish it.

For fiction, I would think it is the same way. I wouldn't come up with a story because I want to write a fiction book. Rather, I would write the fiction book because the story already popped in my head, and I want to see that story become a book.

The only thing I think you need to be fit to be a writer is to have something to say.

Worst case, everything else you can learn to do or have someone or something else to do.

I've known blind authors.

I think losing my eyesight would make writing more inconvenient. But as long as you have something to say, a story to share, be it true or fiction, then I think you are fit to be a writer.

[Eckhart Aurelius Hughes]

How did it feel to put this book out? Did it feel like a burden to put this book out or was it a great feeling to share your ideas with the readers of the world?

Sometimes the writing process felt like a bit of a burden, especially during the times when I wasn't actually physically at the computer typing. I felt committed--in the sense of having a debt. This is because I had created Kickstarter for the book before I actually wrote it, which was successfully funded. In other words, a thousand people or so had already bought and paid for the book before it was even written. So I had a debt was always there even when I wasn't actively working on the book at my computer. In a way, maybe an ironic, that debt was more of an emotional burden when I wasn't actively working on the book. When I was inspired and actually writing it then there the sense of burden was replaced by excitement and even a bit of inspired pleasant mania.

All that aside, once it was already written and edited and ready to go, then it was very exciting. It was a relief to have it done and to have the debt cleared and to be able to share it with the world.

[Mounce574]

Do you prefer pen and paper writing or a computer?' Do you use any special software or a basic word processor for your rough draft?