Interview with Alysa Braceau, Dreamshield
Author of The Sorcerer’s Dream.
An initiation into the sorcerer’s world and mastering conscious (lucid) dreaming.
1: What is the most productive time of the day for you to write?
Early in the morning and late at night but I can write all day:) It happens that I step out of bed at 6 a.m. and then I’m most productive. When I once start a ‘writing project’ I really want to continue but I need to build in some stops. Usually after breakfast I take a walk in the dunes. When I come home I make a pot of coffee and writing starts (again) at about 10 o’clock. I take a short lunch after about three hours and continue to let’s say 5 p.m. I prefer non-stop writing but that’s impossible and of course after diner and after bringing my daughter to bed I usually start writing a few more hours. I just love it!
2: Do you start your projects writing with paper and pen or is it all on the computer?
I started writing on paper. During my apprenticeship with Running Deer, my dreaming teacher I have carefully recorded my personal experiences in a dream diary and at the end I worked it out on a computer.
3: What do you draw inspiration from?
My book is non-fiction and I didn’t work with an outline or anything before I started, like I said I made a book out of my dreaming diary so the writing-process went quite organic. But every writer needs inspiration - if you ask me - and I get that by taking a walk in the dunes where the fresh air and the beautiful nature gives me a new flow!
4: Do you set yourself goals when you sit down to write such as word count?
No, I never did. I just write when I write.
5: Being a self published author how do you come up with your cover art?
My book first was published in Dutch and the cover art I chose myself after searching in (free) stockphoto databases. For the English version I asked Todd the art designer of Booklocker (the publishing company) to design a cover for me! For the Dutch version I came up with antlers and for the English version Todd came up with a Deer skull so that goes well together:)
6: What drives you to chose the career of being a writer?
More than six years ago I met the shaman Running Deer somewhere in Amsterdam. I found him so intriguing that I started a conversation with him. When I visited him a few month later at his place he invited me to be his apprentice to learn the art of mastering conscious dreaming, one of the teachings of totality in the sorcerers tradition. And he suggested me to write a book about my experiences. At that time I was a journalist and used to write about my personal experiences following new age workshops so I eagerly said ‘yes’ to both of his questions.
7: Do you own an ebook reading devise?
E book reading devise, what’s that?
8: Who are some of your favorite authors and What are you reading now?
I really like to read all kinds of books but I guess my favorites are books from the same genre: stories about men/ woman who where initiated in tribes from different cultures sharing their experiences. I enjoy reading about their exotic adventures and how their perception on reality changed during their process and I want to know more about what they learned about healing and personal growth. Favorite authors are ‘oldies’ like Castaneda and apprentices, Olga Kharitidi, Elizabeth Jenkins, Lynn Andrews and many more and now I’m starting to read the lastest book of Paulo Coelho.
9: What do you think of book trailers and do you have any plans to have any?
I like book trailers because they make a movie out of your book and it can be a nice visual introduction if it catches a glimps of the contents and/or the sphere. I have a book trailer and I pretty much like it but I have no idea where to post it…besides facebook and other social media! Maybe it’s just a nice gadget. Who can tell.
10: What are you working on now that you can talk about?
The Art of mastering conscious Dreaming is one of the teachings of Totality I write about in my book The Sorcerer’s Dream. My dreaming teacher Vidar explained there are four practices that guide the apprentice into the totality: the art of dreaming, stalking, hunting and the art of the warrior. He said: “Gradually you will learn to master all of them, but because you are a dreamer the art of dreaming is the most important one for you. On the way to the totality you will learn to master your dreaming, which means that ordinary dreams will come to a halt and will be replaced by the dreaming of the spirit. Ordinary dreams come to a stop, disappear because they are primitive, and take up too much energy. As you master your dreaming, you will have medicine dreams and visions that guide you into the totality.” More about that you will read in my first book.
To answer your question: my learning process continues and my second book will be about the art of stalking, as I explained one of the next teachings of Totality. And I am very curious where this stalking path to Totality brings me!
Thank you very much for being your guest!
Contest
I want to let you know that there is a contest going on right now on my site, offering a chance to win a copy of the Sorcerer’s Dream. I invite you to type in 'Book Giveaway' in the question area and you will be entered in the drawing on Oct 30 (2010). Good luck everyone!
Alysa Braceau aka Dreamshield, author of The Sorcerer’s Dream
Synopsis
This autobiographical adventure is about a journalist who meets the enigmatic sorcerer, Running Deer, and her initiation into the sorcerer's world and mastering conscious dreaming. This book, that follows in the traditions of Carlos Castaneda and others, takes the reader through the magic realms of the unknown and gives a new approach to the traditional training of women sorcerers. It takes place not in some fantasy world, but in a contemporary society, and addresses the things we face on a daily basis in our everyday lives.
Bio: Alysa Braceau, Dreamshield lives in the Netherlands (Europe), she has a 6-year old daughter. She studied social legal studies and the last ten years she is a (freelance) journalist and publisher. Besides that she has a healing practice and gives workshops about the Art of Dreaming.
Dreamshield is author of The Sorcerer’s Dream. The theme of the passed years have been the sorcerers tradition and mastering conscious (lucid) dreaming. She carefully recorded her personal experiences which has finally led to this first book.
A short pitch on where to buy The Sorcerer’s Dream
The Sorcerer’s dream, an initiation into the sorcerer’s world and mastering conscious dreaming. Buy it at:
http://www.booklocker.com/books/4654.html
The book can be ordered on Amazon – http://www.amazon.com/Sorcerers-Dream-Dreamshield-Alysa-Braceau/dp/1609101561 and everywhere they sell books
Website: http://www.dreamshield.nl
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