Distilling the Essence into a Book

“The act of distillation is the process or art
whereby the invisible is made visible”
…Jeanne Rose 2001

Writing a book can be more of a mystery than a chore, more of a spiritual journey than a total act of will. And because the alchemy that goes into writing a book is invisible to everyone but the writer ~ (until, that is, the book is complete and available to be read by those fortunate beings who will get to receive the benefits of that alchemical process) ~ it is difficult to show this process directly.

That's one reason why I love to use the analogy of distilling roses into natural perfumes and essential oils. There are parallels. Though a beginning book-writer might not think so at first, as s/he steps over the threshold of desire and into the at-first daunting unknown. It is that unknown that both calls and daunts the writer, actually. The call is towards what is not yet visible, or even consciously known to the writer. The daunting aspect is "What do I do?"

So the alchemy of book writing proceeds ~ admittedly, with less of a formulaic certainty than distilling rose petals into rose perfume ~ step by step into the unknown of oneself, until that veil has lifted sufficiently to reveal the glory of what has been seeking to be revealed through the writing. The writer, often unbeknownst to her or himself, plays all the parts of the distillation process, save one. The writer is the rose garden (or acres of rose fields) that will be harvested to produce the bewitching scents. The writer is the harvester, rising at dawn to pluck the fragrant blooms in their perfect moment. The writer is the worker, hoisting the sacks of rose petals (soft and fragrant, but bulky) into the truck, driving the truck to the distillery, spreading the petals onto the floor to reach the desired state, placing them into the still or alembic, and monitoring the progress of their transformation. 

I said, "all parts of the distillation process save one." That one is the transformative process itself, something that writers ~ and all of us ~ can set the stage for, but cannot do directly. This is something larger that holds us and distills us, makes of our own composted material (both in us and what we have written) an essence, refined out of the "lower nature" of our being. This transformation, which many of us devoutly seek, takes place in the heart, and changes our outlook, our centering, our contribution to the world and our own inner evolution.

We can certainly go through this distillation process without writing a book, ever. And yet writing a book from the deeper Self (which is what I teach and offer as book-development services) is one way to go through this distillation process.

The benefit? The "perfume" at the end is the book ~ and, who the writer has become in the course of writing the book.

And this is why I call Rose Press, "Books & Other Fragrant Offerings."

To see what treasures are available for you, go to the Rose Press website: http://www.rosepress.com/. We have books on the Creative Process; on Money & the Inner Life; and on Healing. And more than being "about" these subjects, they give the actual scent of healing, so that as a reader you come out fragrant. (And that is a very sweet thing.)

Why a blog about book (& etc.) publishing is called "Coming Up Roses"

My name is Naomi Rose, and I am a book developer, writer, and publisher. But that's not why this blog is called "Coming Up Roses."

In my own writing experience, and certainly in my work with people who long to write the books waiting in their hearts, the process of bringing out what's there ~ and then refining it, distilling it to its essence ~ is much like the process of making rose perfume. In this process, thousands upon thousands of rose petals are gathered from the live plants at auspicious times, such as just before dawn, and while still shimmering with life are placed into (usually copper) retorts, where (often with the aid of some solvent) a fire is lit underneath the retort, and over rather a long time the essential oils in the rose petals are separated by the heat and the steam from the water. In this way, rose perfume is extracted.

It takes about 10,000 rose petals to make 1 ounce of Rose Absolute. (You can see why it would be very expensive.)

This process, and its aromatic result, is metaphorically and energetically amazingly similar to what happens when a person writes a book from the deep place within. All the initial confusions, awkward drafts, turn-arounds, false starts, and so on at some point drop away, like the rose petals that have given their essence up (literally, upwards into the retort). And what is left is the beautiful, seamless, fragrant, moving, even breathtaking, alive transmission held in wait on the pages ~ held there in suspension, waiting for a reader to open the book's cover and enter into that fragrant world and make it her or his own.

The process of writing a book is such a transformative, even alchemical, journey that it's no wonder people initially want it and fear it. Something in them will change as a result of undertaking this project ~ if, of course, it is a book of the heart. (If not, things happen within the writer, but not so much a transformation of the writer or the reader.)  And yet it's also a beautiful journey! To find what is true in oneself, and to come upon ways of giving voice to that ~ whether one is writing a memoir, a nonfiction book, a fictional account, or whatever form it takes ~ is to unveil the depth and immense beauty of one's own being. It's the search for oneself, line by line, page by page.

This essentially alchemical process distinguishes itself from ordinary book-writing by its contents, qualities, and energy carrying that alchemy for the benefit and blessing of its readers.

And this is why Rose Press books are distillations of their author's hearts, speaking directly to readers' hearts. This is why Rose Press books are fragrant, and why ~ after all the work to write them ~ for both readers and the authors, everything’s coming up roses.

For more about Naomi Rose book development: See "Writing from the Deeper Self," www.essentialwriting.com

For more on Rose Press: Books & Other Fragrant Offerings to Bring You Home to Yourself: See http://essentialwriting.com/RosePressPublishing.htm