In my professional and spiritual journey, I didn’t have a specific mentor or guide.
I had books.
My writing mentor was Steven Pressfield. He taught me how to face the blank page.
My career mentor was Seth Godin. He gave me the courage to ship my art.
Spiritually, numerous authors left their mark on me, but one book stands out among the rest.…
I was in my 20s, and my life was in shambles. Not externally — On the surface, everything appeared good. I had a good job, friends, girlfriend. But in my head, I was living out a horror movie.
Looking back, it’s easy to connect the dots. Lingering trauma and hurt from my childhood were suppressed for so long that when they eventually emerged, it was like a foreign monster inside me. It manifested itself as OCD and intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, and anxiety. I honestly thought I was going mad. If you’ve read any of my books, you might see that horror-like journey on the page.
One day, amidst the chaos of another panic attack, I stumbled into a bookstore. Desperate for a lifeline, I gravitated towards a new release—a book with a serene blue cover. As I flipped through its pages, a single line pierced through the darkness
I can't recall the exact words, but the impact was immediate. I felt a deep sense of lightness, this sense of knowing—everything would be okay.
The book was The Power of Now, and that divine experience led me down a decade-long spiritual path toward God, toward my calling, and ultimately, healing.
To me, books have a way of coming to us at the precise right time. As if a higher power knows the exact story we need for healing. The book chooses the reader kind of thing.
Whenever I doubt my calling or question why I choose to spend years writing books that may or may not be read, I remember that scared twentysomething kid in the bookstore reaching out for help, longing to be seen.
And I think—what if someone needs my story? What if someone is going to feel seen somewhere on these pages?
And so the work continues.
Paul Cohelo wrote the bestselling novel The Alchemist, one of the most influential books ever written. When I imagine his creative ritual, I picture him closing his eyes in front of an old-school typewriter, syncing himself to the divine before releasing his next masterpiece onto the page.
Nope.
It might be comforting to know that Cohelo struggles to write like the rest of us. He checks his emails, his news, and everything else to avoid facing the blank page.
Finally, after long periods of procrastination, he begins the process.
Like most great writers, Paulo doesn’t rely on divine moments of inspiration. He relies on discipline. When he’s feeling stuck, he doesn’t abandon an idea. He sits and leans into the resistance.
“In the middle of a book, there I am: I don’t know how to continue the story. But then, I say, ‘You book, are fighting with me… I’m going to sit here, and I’m not going to leave you alone until I find my way out of the crossroads.’ It may take 10 minutes. It will take 10 hours. But if you don’t have enough discipline, you don’t move forward…”
Did you know?
A small Brazilian publisher initially published The Alchemist. It sold only 900 copies and was declined to be reprinted. It wasn’t until one of the subsequent novels started selling that The Alchemist was revived, and the rest is history. The Alchemist has now sold over 65 million copies.
PS - My new novel, The Eleven is now out! Here are some new reviews if I haven’t convinced you yet!
“The plot was so atmospheric and mysterious. The book is unputdownable.” - NetGalley Review
“The book makes you think well after the last page is read. 5 stars!” - Net Galley Review
“A unique and captivating story of deceit, redemption, and the insatiable hunger for stardom.” - Net Galley Review.
“The last time I loved the book this much was The Carnaval Of Curiosities, and before that, it was years ago with The Night Circus.” - Net Galley Review.