Dear Ones —

Today, as I get up to write to you, it is early morning – a little after 4AM. The sky is still dark, the birds are still quiet, even the tree frogs ceased their chorus several hours ago. It is in these very quiet moments that I share with you, because one of the things that I (and many other creative persons) most like to hear is: What is the creative process like? What is it like to actually write a book; to go from concept to many rough drafts to final form to the final polish?

The creative process in others fascinates us, because we hope to learn something that we can use and apply to our own endeavors.

As soon as the sun rises, and the spell of quiet-time breaks, daylight energy starts surging in and I’m part of the “practical world” once again. And now that I am so close, so very close, to getting Unveiling to you, much of what I’ve put off over the past year is now on my desk. My daily “to-do” list crawls off the page, and – just as with you – even as I write down all the “to-do’s” and attempt prioritizing, I know that I’ll only do a small fraction of what’s on the list.

And the reason, of course, that I only get a fraction of the “other stuff” done is that I’m still massively allocating time to Unveiling.

A while ago – this is about a month or so back – I could sense the energetic “completeness” of Unveiling. At some level, it was already in final form. All the chapters were in place, all the necessary concepts and thoughts were there – even though I’ve continued to get guidance and inputs, and little things that make such a difference to the final outcome still come to me. (This is much like adding the final fresh, most tender, ingredients to a long-simmered stew, just before serving.)

As I said, energetically, Unveiling was complete.

Pragmatically – now that’s an entirely different story.

I spent most of yesterday, and will spend much time over the next few days, writing the Permissions letters. These are the ones in which the author contacts the publishers of other author’s works, asking for permission to include extracts of the others’ works in their own.

In my case, I have many, MANY extracts from other author’s works. About three dozen in all.

Why so many, you might ask? After all, isn’t Unveiling supposed to be my work – not just a compilation of ideas and insights from others?

And yes, truly, it is.

But the story goes back to the origin of Unveiling.

Many years ago, I began my own quest. I realized that I had stumbled, more or less, on a “path.” In fact, I had found the “path” that I was looking for – a body/mind/psyche/energy integration pathway for women. I had spent many years prior studying martial arts, and finally (and somewhat reluctantly) concluded that they were not right for me. All that block-kick-punch-strike — too masculine. While I loved the energy, the intensity, the total awareness and physical discipline of the martial arts, they were essentially masculine. Fundamentally, they were all about fighting. As a woman, I was less and less interested in fighting; less and less interested in the masculine path. I wanted one that was, at its core, intrinsically feminine.

When I found Oriental (belly) dance, I knew that I had “come home.” And for years, I was able to find extraordinary teachers in the dance arts, much as I’d earlier found extraordinary teachers in the martial arts. (I write about them in Unveiling, and in the Unveiling website – when it is itself “unveiled” – I’ll link to their sites.)

But even though I was getting fabulous dance training, crucial aspects – the “life-path-integration” aspects – were still missing.

I craved some sort of guidance. Specifically, I craved a book.

I looked high and low, and couldn’t find one. (This was some fifteen years ago.)

In response to my own need, I began writing. And of course, books – written by others – began to emerge. They played a crucial role in what I’ll be sharing with you.

So – right now, my job is to get those Permissions letters out, day by day, until all the publishers and authors have been contacted. Then, Unveiling can rightfully give you tiny little “snippets” of insights that others have provided, and you’ll be able to follow up on your own.

This is a long job – I’ve been at it for days, and more will come. But what is exciting is that years ago – when I first started writing to you – these materials (by and large) did not exist. Or I was unaware of them. Or even – if aware – I didn’t understand the role that they would play in the final manuscript. (Again, think of cooking — and being in a well-stocked kitchen. Sometimes, we don’t realize that we need a certain ingredient – like a bit of tomato paste as well as the fresh tomatoes – until we’re well underway with the cooking!)

Now, new and relevant books, articles, webzines and blogs are producing relevant insights, every single day. This means that many of us are holding the same thoughts, and asking the same questions.

Darlings, it is time to unveil Unveiling, and I can’t wait to share it with you!