Interview with Rudy Mazzocchi, author of 'Storytelling: The Indispensable Art of Entrepreneurism'
Authoring more than 50 patents, he has helped pioneer new companies involved in cardiology, oncology, orthopedics, neurosurgery and even embryonic stem-cell development. Through these efforts, he has become the recipient of many technology and business awards, including the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in Healthcare (2004), Businessman of the Year Award (2005), and Global Entrepreneur of the Year Award (2013).
Combining these experiences and opportunities, with thousands of hours of travel and long evenings in hotel rooms, he found the initiative to start writing a collection of award-winning business/medical thrillers based on true events, known as The EQUITY Series. STORYTELLING was his debut non-fiction business book released in November 2013.
Visit his website at www.rudymazzocchi.com.
Q: Welcome
to The Writer's Life! Now that your book
has been published, we’d love to find out more about the process. Can we begin by having you take us at the
beginning? Where did you come up with
the idea to write your book?
A.
While slowly building some brand recognition for my
two published thrillers (EQUITY of EVIL
and EQUITY of FEAR), I was nominated
a third time for the Entrepreneur of the
Year Award. During a meeting with the judges, they were trying to determine
the primary reason for my success that drove my career as a ‘serial
entrepreneur’. Honestly, I didn’t give it much thought until glaring into the
eyes of these six judges. I had no academic business training, no long lineage
of business tycoons in the family, and nothing that could be identified as my
real first “break” in the industry. And then I blurted it out… “I just seem to
have this knack for telling the story!” After explaining myself further, they
all said (nearly in unison) that they’ve never heard such a rational reason,
and that I should write a book on the subject. I submitted a manuscript to my
editors about four months later.
Q: How
hard was it to write a book like this and do you have any tips that you could
pass on which would make the journey easier for other writers?
A.
This was actually a very easy book for me to write,
because it was based on a personal philosophy and a business practice that I’ve
followed for over twenty-five years. Some may even view this book as a personal
memoir, but it was never my intention of taking such an autobiographical
approach with this. I simply described what worked and didn’t work for me while
building my career, and supplied very candid examples (good or bad) to support
my views on his indispensable art of being an entrepreneur.
Q: Who
is your publisher and how did you find them or did you self-publish?
A.
I was extremely fortunate to identify and “hook” a
publisher following the completion of my first novel, EQUITY of EVIL. As a fellow entrepreneur, Lida Quillen of Twilight
Times Books saw something in my writing style and has been mentoring and
guiding me through this industry ever since. There was no hesitation in
bringing her this non-fiction book (my third book) that seemed to painlessly
follow the release pattern of the previous two. Lida was introduced to me by my
primary editor, Gerry Mills.
Q: Is
there anything that surprised you about getting your first book published?
A.
Oh yeah! As a virgin in this industry, I thought
that once you had a literary agency, publisher and series of professional
editors in your camp, all you had to do was sit back and pick and choose where your
next book signing might be. I didn’t realize that promoting and selling the book was still the full obligation and
responsibility of the author. The promotional aspect of this business is much
more difficult than getting your work published!
Q:
What other books (if any) are you working on and when will they be published?
A.
I’ve recently finished the research for my third novel
in The EQUITY Series called EQUITY of
LIFE. This will probably be my most challenging book to write and don’t
anticipate having a finished manuscript until a year from now. Given the
rigorous editing process my books seem to go through, I would be thrilled (no
pun intended) to see this released by mid-year 2015.
Q:
What’s your favorite place to hang out online?
A.
I guess I’m a bit “old-school” and have had to
force myself to spend a certain amount of time every day promoting my books via
social media. You’ll find me on the classic sites; Twitter, LinkedIN, Facebook
(Ugh!) and my Blog site.
Q:
Finally, what message (if any) are you trying to get across with your book?
A.
That storytelling
is an important element of everything we do, and should be a valuable component
of who we are. It’s an art that needs
to be practiced and perfected over time. As an entrepreneur, business-owner, or
manager, the ability to tell your story can mean the difference between success
and failure. It’s also an art that
can help you in your personal relationships and is just as important as the art
of being a good listener.
Q: Thank
you again for this interview! Do you
have any final words?
A. As stated in this book… I
think it is important that we all understand and appreciate the value of this
art so that we can revive and continue to promote it to ensure that
entrepreneurism continues to expand throughout our country.
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