RICK STOCKWELL lives in Connecticut with his wife. He has two married children and five grandchildren. THE WALL is Book 1 in the Heavenly Realms series, followed by THE BATTLE.
RICK STOCKWELL was raised in Connecticut, attended Brown University where he majored in English and History, and then served as an officer in the United Stated Marine Corps. After completing his military service, RICK earned an MBA degree at Emory University, and worked as a controller for a small business. MR. STOCKWELL then began a career in the IT departments of various consulting and financial services companies, first as a designer/developer, and then as a project/program manager.
RICK loves long-distance running, fiction classics like Pride and Prejudice and A Christmas Carol, watching science fiction/fantasy movies like the Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and Star Trek series, and relaxing on the beautiful beaches of Rhode Island.
Answer: After a severe auto accident, twenty-nine-year-old Jackson Trotman is taken by his guardian angel to a place in the heavenly realms called The Wall. There he can travel into the past, present, or future of anyone who has ever lived. He soon discovers that many of his friends—including his future wife—are destined for hell. He’s returned to earth and vows to rescue them from their fate, no matter the cost.
Question #2: Where did you get the idea to write The Wall?
Answer: I was running on the treadmill and memorizing Ephesians Chapter 1 from the Bible, when the image of The Wall popped into my head, immediately followed by an explanation of what it meant.
Question #3: Why should people read your book?
Answer: The tagline on the book cover is, “What would you do, if you knew for certain, that a close friend or relative would be going to hell?” Think of someone who doesn’t know Christ as savior. Imagine them, at some point in the future, writhing in agony in hell. Then imagine them, a thousand or more years later, standing before the great white throne as God pronounces them guilty, and watching as they are cast into the lake of fire to experience an eternity of maximum suffering.
My hope is that Christians reading The Wall will develop a renewed sense of urgency to reach out to their friends and relatives with the good news that Jesus paid for their sins on the cross, and that they can go to heaven when they die by believing in Him and giving their life to him.
My hope for non-Christians reading The Wall is that they realize they’re sinners before God, that they’ll be willing to turn away from their sins, and that they will recognize their need to ask Jesus to be their savior.
Question #4: What are you currently working on?
Answer:
The Wall is Book 1 in a planned four-book series.
The working title for Book 2 is The Battle.
The tagline is: What would you do, if you knew for certain, that Satan was planning to murder your entire family?
The pitch is: Convinced Jackson Trotman's family is the key to the church's rapture, Satan orders his underlings to kill them all. An epic battle ensues in the heavenly realms between the ancient forces of good and evil to protect Jackson's loved ones and accomplish God's will for all humanity. If they fail, his sister-in-law, Monica Baker, will become the queen of a demonic lord, then spend the rest of eternity in the lake of fire. The manuscript has been completed and professionally edited. Rick is in the process of applying the second round of edits.
In Book 3, some characters stand before the judgment seat of Christ while others are left to suffer through the tribulation.
In Book 4, Jesus returns to the earth and begins his thousand-year reign, known as the millennium, assisted by several characters who rule kingdoms on his behalf.
Question #5: What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Answer: Never give up! Kathy Tyers, my former writing instructor, informed me that writing a novel is a "long slog." She was so right. It took much longer and required much more effort than I ever imagined. Writing a novel requires great tenacity and perseverance. There’s still a lot of work to do afterward to get your book in the hands of your audience.
My suggestion for aspiring writers is to run a marathon. It takes discipline and hard work to prepare for one, and will teach you to never give up.
Please see my website, rickstockwell.com, for suggestions on how to write a novel.
Question #6: How do you deal with writer’s block?
Answer:
Get rid of clutter (i.e., email, bills, newspapers, magazines, dishes, laundry, television)
Play familiar instrumental classical music. (Turn it off if it becomes a distraction.)
Keep a To Do list of changes you want to make to your manuscript, so you don't have to keep track of them in your head
Exercise. Running works best for me
Question #7: What’s the thing you like best about being a writer?
Answer: Expressing my creativity in a way that helps others.
Question #8: How do you get inspired to write?
Answer: I pray, then listen to classical instrumental music that takes me on a journey.
