Today we’d like to introduce you to Joel Walkowski.
Hi Joel, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Writing has always been a passion but a once promising career got derailed by addiction. I was 21 years old the first time I got published and nearly drinking myself to death by age 22. It was 14 years later, I was sitting in Recovery Groups and asked “what are your goals?”
I thought it’d be cool to write a book sober. Not just any book but this book. I could tie my psyche to my team, my father, and the problems that seemed to follow all three around.
In the course of this my father’s health declined. I became his caretake, scribbling in journals and handing them to him for his approval. In a tough chapter this book became a source of structure and stability. My purpose.
Honolulu Blues was sold on it’s very first pitch. People love the book but it has become a lightning rod for people to share their troubles, their insecurities, the flawed loves that keeps them going.
I am touring with the book. I speak at book stores but also libraries and addiction groups, wellness retreats & with grieving families. There is something in this book for everyone but it turns out those people are usually in some form of emotional need.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Apart from 15 years of addiction…
I was the caretaker to a dying man, cleaning out his hoarder home, transporting to live near family, and carefully administering his medicine. I also had to chide him for constantly eating Orange Sherbert ice cream.
I mentioned that I wrote the first draft by hand. What I didn’t mention was leaving a journal on top of my car, having them fly off and get hit by a truck. I was elbow deep in the sewer, fishing out pages when a neighbor recognized me.
As the book neared completion there was more death in my life. When grief hit my life I turned to this book.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I write longform experimental non-fiction. My background is as an addiction counselor so I do my best work blending pop culture and self-help.
I believe that being incredibly honest and open makes my work easier to resonate with. I don’t know that it necessarily makes it stand out but writing a book that only I can write inherently makes the book stand out.
I write about tough topics and disappointment but try to do so from a place of joy. Notably in my work I utilize comedic footnotes to give a sidebar into the topic and derive laughs that would otherwise distract from the primary storyline.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
My happiness comes from the flow state of putting words on the page, knowing that nothing else exists in the world until it is time to get up and change the record.
I also really enjoy playing basketball. I contend that no sensation compares to the joy of hitting a three pointer.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://bigwalkowski.com
- Instagram: joelwalkowski
