51: How Your Health Can Impact Your Creativity with David Cornish

Are you bursting with creativity or are you perhaps feeling a little under the weather right now? Have you noticed how much your state of health impacts on your levels of creativity? Today, we're starting season three of the podcast with an interview with Dr. David Cornish. David is Karen's friend and he's the author of two terrific novels, 1918: The Great Pandemic, and 1980: The Emergence of HIV. With the current escalation of viral illnesses in the world, this is a really good time for reading these topical novels, so tune in, to learn more about David Cornish and his books.         David practiced gastro-neurology for thirty-three years before retiring last year. He still works part-time, though, to keep his hand in the craft. He has always loved writing and even took some writing courses while studying Medicine at the University of California. About ten years ago, David wrote two non-fiction books about service in medicine. (Evidence In-Service and The Essential 20.) Then, about three years later, he decided to try his hand at writing a novel, and this was followed by a sequel a few years later. In today's episode, David talks about his two novels. He discusses his process of writing and he explores the reasons for reading and writing stories. He also reflects on the seriousness of viral illness, and the emotion behind human stories that are associated with diseases like influenza and HIV. Listen in today, to hear about David's creative approach to writing. Show highlights: David explains how he got into writing books and why he chose these specific topics to write about. The influenza pandemic in 1918 was the worst natural disaster in human history. The main characters in David's books are fictional, but the events are all accurate. David talks about some of the projects he's taken on since retiring. David explains why he likes writing historical fiction. The difference between writing fiction, and writing about something technical, related to medicine. David found fiction a lot harder to write than non-fiction. David's approach to writing historical fiction. David talks about why people read novels rather than non-fiction. The influence that David's mother had on his creativity and his writing. Writing from what you like, and about what you know. David talks about the teachers who inspired him to write. Why you need to keep re-reading and revising what you have written. David explains why you need to have someone edit your work. David shares some observations about the difficulties associated with publishing a book, currently. Why ebooks are here to stay. David shares his thoughts about creativity, and about where his writing comes from. Links: Karen's website: A Creative Approach Podcast David's website: David Cornish Books. This is where you will find his bio and information about his books. All David's books, including the non-fiction ones, have links to Amazon and Barnes and Noble. David's Facebook Page The link to Ursula Le Guin: Wikipedia: Ursula K. Le Guin