Meet Carol LaHines

We were lucky to catch up with Carol LaHines recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Carol, appreciate you sitting with us today. Maybe we can start with a topic that we care deeply about because it’s something we’ve found really sets folks apart and can make all the difference in whether someone reaches their goals. Self discipline seems to have an outsized impact on how someone’s life plays out and so we’d love to hear about how you developed yours?

I studied music for many years. As a musician, you have to practice on a regular basis, else you do not improve. Hours a day, consistently over time. Few other metiers require a similar level of discipline. I credit my study of music with imparting my discipline as a writer.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I write fiction. For many years, I wrote primarily short stories; now, I write longer works. I’m the author of two novels, Someday Everything Will All Make Sense (2019) and The Vixen Amber Halloway, which came out in June 2024, as well as one of the contributors in the multi-author anthology, Distant Flickers. Fiction, for me, represents life, perhaps moreso than nonfiction or reportage, which are constrained to their fidelity to the story as it transpired; fiction can encapsulate larger truths. Language is vital to fiction: wordsmithery, rhythm, cadence, etc. Fiction is a way of arresting time; of recapitulating a moment–a means of transcribing human consciousness on the page.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Reading, reading, reading–I never stopped
Critical thinking
Study of music, which enabled me to internalize aspects of musical structure

Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?

My favorite books are Lolita and Moby-Dick. Nabokov, to me, is the master wordsmith; he dazzles us with prose, sure, but he also succeeds in slyly and subversively making his point. He is always playing chess with the reader, seducing us with words. Melville, too, is a consummate writer. Moby-Dick, on the one hand, is a whaling epic; on the other, it is an existential quest, an epistemological delight.

Contact Info:

Suggest a Story: BoldJourney is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems,
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
Resilience
Where do you get your resilience from?

Resilience is often the x-factor that differentiates between mild and wild success. The stories of

Productivity
Beating Burnout

Often the key to having massive impact is the ability to keep going when others

Leadership Development
Finding Your Why

Not knowing why you are going wherever it is that you are going sounds silly,