Planet of Eden is Dan Whicker’s first novel, but writing has been a major part of his 27-year career in communications and marketing. In fact, being a professional communicator has made Dan a pro at creating believable dialogue.
“I’ve had to write in so many voices over the years,” Dan says, “it just made sense that I should be able to bring fictional people to life just like I did for real people by giving them words to say.”
From advertising copy to speech and script writing to online content creation, Dan spent years wordsmithing for a variety of businesses, organizations, industries, fields, and audiences. All the while, he developed a love for writing and knew it was time to apply his skills to the world of fictional storytelling.
Dan reveals that “Planet of Eden actually began as a film script.” The earliest version of the story was like a movie playing in his head. “I think it’s like that for a lot of authors,” he says. “Many of us can see the story being played out in our minds. Then, we have to figure out how to draw that story out, whether through the visual arts or the written word. Once I put pen to paper and fingers to the keyboard, the story took off and I knew it had to become a novel.”
As the story grew, Dan then realized that one novel would not contain it, so he planned for a series and kept at it.
“It took years to write Eden,” he admits. “In between, I had all the usual life stuff—family, work, education, and I had to leave room for my own care—but I kept at it, learning how to become a better writer in the process.”
It’s the dialogue in the novel that Dan enjoys the most. As he explains it, “I want the characters to tell the story. That’s what makes my writing so different. I want the reader to be absorbed into the story, vicariously exploring and unraveling mysteries as if being right there in the middle of the action.”
Though he loves fiction, Dan also likes to write about subjects as diverse as modern culture, philosophy, metaphysics, religion, biology, business, leadership, and relationships.
“It helps to be well-rounded,” he notes, “especially in fiction writing. To become that, you write about a lot of different things. Fortunately, my career in communications provided outlets for me to cover many, many subjects in my writing.”
Today, that shows in Dan’s deep and thought-provoking blog posts and articles.
“If nothing else, I’ll get you thinking” he says. “If I can get you to think deeply and differently, I’ll consider my writing career a success.”
When Dan is not behind a computer, he is honing his singing voice and teaching himself to play the guitar. Often, you can find him beachcombing in Florida where he lives with his two sons. Follow Dan’s BLOG and keep in touch by going to his MAKING CONTACT page.
