PUYB Virtual Book Club Chats with D.A. Hewitt, author of 'Dominion'

D.A. Hewitt is an award-winning author of four novels and over a hundred short stories. One novel was awarded a gold medal from the Independent Publishers Book Awards for best regional fiction. He attributes his success to hard work, honing a skill and providing an outlet for his passion for writing.

Born in Michigan, he lived for 25 years in North Carolina before returning to live in his home state. In addition to enjoying sky diving and mountain climbing, he is a proud veteran of the US Marine Corps and has earned a degree in mathematics.

Mr. Hewitt admits to a fascination with the work of Carl Jung and of the Gnostic religion. He’d always thought intertwining these topics in a science fiction novel was a stretch, but one day the storyline of Dominion came to him. He wrote the novel in a stream of consciousness. “It makes sense, tapping into the collective unconscious,” Mr. Hewitt says, “very much like Carl Jung might have predicted.”

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About the Book:

Title: DOMINION: FIRE AND ICE
Author: D.A. Hewitt
Publisher: Double Dragon eBooks
Pages: 372
Genre: Science Fiction

It’s the year 2075. Lunar mining and processing facilities have prospered near the lunar south pole, where the Moon’s largest city, Valhalla, rests on the rim of the Shackleton Crater.

Dominion Off-Earth Resources has beaten the competition into space and is ready to establish its monopoly with the opening of the orbiting space resort Dominion. But Pettit Space Industries has a secret plan to emerge as a major contender in the commercialization of space. The upstart company is training the first space rescue squad at a secluded off-grid site in Barrow, Alaska.

The rescue squad gets nearly more than it can handle when its first mission involves the Pope, who’s traveling to the Moon to establish the Lunar See. During the rescue attempt, they discover Earth is imperiled by an asteroid large enough to cause mass extinction. Using the unique skills taught during their training, skills emphasized by the great psychoanalyst Carl Jung, these Jungi Knights must elevate their game if they are to save both the Earth and the Pope—while not getting killed in the process.

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Before you started writing your book, what kind of research did you do to prepare yourself?

To write Dominion, I needed to know a lot about psychology. I studied the work of Carl Jung and the Nag Hamaddi scrolls. Eventually I developed the Process Map of Consciousness. You can view it at my website, www.StinkyUniverse.com.

Did you pursue publishers or did you opt to self-pub?

I submitted to the big publishers first. There was some interest, but nothing panned out. Eventually I went with Double Dragon, a small press. They’ve been wonderful to work with.

If published by a publisher, what was your deciding factor in going with them?

There were two deciding factors. The editor was enthusiastic about my novel, and their response time was very quick. With larger publishers, the waits can be months, even years.

If published by a publisher, are you happy with the price they chose?

I think the e-book price was fair and in line with most other e-books in the science fiction genre. The print price was a bit high, but because it’s a small press, their print runs are smaller and so they have to set a higher price to break even.

How did you choose your cover?

The publisher chose the cover, although I had some input. I suggested the Earth and the Moon superimposed. That’s very apt for my sci fi novel (Dominion). The novel chronicles the Moon’s declaration of independence after it is colonized. As you can imagine, the declaration causes much conflict.

Did you write your book, then revise or revise as you went?

Both, actually! I typically rewrite the previous day’s efforts when I sit down to write. Of course, after the novel is finished, I revise the entire manuscript.

What’s your opinion on giving your book away to sell other copies of your book?

I don’t mind giving some books away. As an author, I’m trying to get the word out about my novel. Anything I can do to achieve that is fair game. Of course, I’d like to make enough to be able to quit my day job, but that’s the aspiration of many a novelist.

What are three of the most important things you believe an author should do before their book is released?

Get a website and business card. If you already have them, update them. Now, I know that’s only two things. But they’re very important. The third would be to become active in social media. Social media is a great tool for getting the word out about your novel.

What are three of the most important things you believe an author should do after their book is released?

Celebrate, promote, and get started on your next book.

What kind of pre-promotion did you do before the book came out? 

I developed my website, www.StinkyUniverse.com and a blog, www.StinkyUniverse29.com. My blog has a great “steal this thesis” theme. I’ve also developed a presence in social media.

Do you have a long term plan with your book?

I would love to make it a trilogy. We shall have to wait and see. I have other novels in the pipeline.

What would you like to say to your readers and fans about your book?

My hope is that Dominion is not only a great read for fans of science fiction, but that it also is a great read for fans of other genres. And beyond that, I hope readers get a sense of the power of psychoanalysis and how it relates to religion. I’ve developed a Process Map of Consciousness and posted it on my Stinky Universe website, and it’s my belief that it can help people understand themselves in the context of a complex psychological world.