Do You Believe in Destiny?
Hi, this is Guillaume Wolf “Prof. G,”
author of the newly released supernatural thriller, The Last Arakad.
Before we start, I want to thank The Creatively Green Write at Home Mom for
inviting me to guest blog; it’s a pleasure to be here.
So today, I’d like to ask you a question:
Do you believe in Destiny?
In my novel, The Last Arakad, you
will discover the adventure of a young woman who falls into a fast-paced rabbit
hole of personal and external conflicts. From these experiences, she ends up
being completely transformed. She evolves from being a shy girl with little
self-confidence into a very powerful woman—inside out.
I’m an author but also a reader. And as a
reader, I really enjoy watching these transformations unfold in stories.
They’re both inspiring and nurturing.
But, I wonder: both in life and in
stories, do these types of transformations occur because of personal willpower
. . . or does destiny truly exists?
This is actually a powerful question. If
you consider it in a mechanical kind of way, this implies two radical ways of
looking at life and the world:
1• Destiny-centric: If destiny exists,
everything is prewritten, and we’re acting through a life script beyond our
comprehension.
2• Free Will: If everything is based on
free will (and its cousin willpower); we get to determine what our life will be
like.
Now, I don’t know where you stand on
this, but if you look at either of these positions and ponder them, you’ll find
out that something is missing. In fact, both are quite reductive.
For years, I was a firm advocate of free
will. My younger self thought that everything could be tackled through
willpower. And somehow, it worked. But when I was faced with a series of random
personal tragedies (including the stillbirth of a baby girl) that were so
unfair, so unpredictable, I was confronted head on with the bigger picture.
I wrote about it here
(http://www.profgblog.com/2011/08/this-is-a-manifesto-a-bold-statement-a-bursting-of-words-a-call-for-change-this-is-my-poetic-message-to-you-it-goes-like.html)
And when, one year later, my wife and I
had another baby girl who almost died
(http://www.profgblog.com/2011/10/real-life-hurts-sometimes.html) because of a
staph infection she caught at the hospital, I was again confronted with the
horror of feeling powerless. This was a script I didn’t write (Note: thank God,
she survived and has been the picture of health ever since).
While I didn’t write these scripts, I
also could not predict how profoundly these tragedies would change me. And this
is where the mystery begins.
You know, as an author, you always get to
decide what’s going to happen to your characters. You have total control. But
through these experiences, I’ve been humbled by Life with just the
opposite—total loss of control—facing events I would not wish to anyone.
This is what I found out: The personal
tragedies I faced made me a better person. They transformed me at the core. It
may sound weird, but I see now how they were part of my destiny.
So this is what I’d like to share with
you. Instead of polarizing free will vs. destiny; what if both were working
hand in hand—synergistically. What if there was something called “destiny”—a
big picture narrative that would also challenge you to express your free will?
What would it be like?
This is the world I live in.
Come and visit. It’s not always easy, but
it’s a beautiful way to look at Life (with a big L).
by Guillaume Wolf “Prof. G”
Do you believe in destiny?
When sensitive Maya moves with her brother Thomas from Los Angeles to Paris hoping for a better life, she has no idea that everything is about to dramatically change.
What starts as an initiation into the age-old Arakad magical tradition takes an unexpected turn when a wave of brutal murders shatters her world. Caught up in an ancient prophecy, she finds herself at the center of a ruthless battle between good and evil in which humanity’s future is at stake.
When all hope is lost and she becomes the final target of a sinister clan, will Maya learn to trust herself and her own power? Or will her own fears prevail?
Born in Africa (Sénégal), raised in Paris, France, and currently living in Los Angeles, California, Guillaume Wolf “Prof G.” embodies the spirit of the 21st Century “global village.”
Guillaume has spent decades exploring the transformative power of symbols, archetypes, and creativity (and their relationship with the everyday world); and this passion inspires his writing.
Guillaume’s background includes among others: creative director; branding consultant; and teacher of communication design at the prestigious Art Center College of Design in Pasadena.
He is the author of reDESIGN: reCREATE, a book about reinvention and creativity. The Last Arakad is his first novel.
Guillaume lives with his wife and daughter in Los Angeles, California.
To learn more about Guillaume Wolf’s books and discover additional content, collectibles, and behind-the-scenes bonuses, visit www.Arakad.com
Meet Guillaume on Facebook at www.facebook.com/profgpage.
Web: http://www.arakad.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profgpage
