About Me — Brett Surbey

To be honest, I have never really classified myself as a writer, not until recently.

Photo from the author

Without question, however, I would classify myself as a reader — a lover of words.

Since my childhood and adult days I’ve pored over the writings of King, Tolkien, Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Shelley, and more, all for the paradoxically purpose of learning about — and leaving — this world.

Funny enough, my love of reading (specifically expensive academic books on philosophy) led me to writing as a freelancer. But, my real journey into writing for an audience began about a year prior.

Small steps

“I’ve always wanted to be published in an academic journal,” I confessed to my Ph.D friend and mentor. But I know that my lack of education (I held a bachelor’s degree and a diploma at the time) ostensibly held me back.

Not according to him: “That’s easy. Let’s get you to review a book.”

Me? Review an academic book?

Sure, I loved reading philosophy, philosophy of religion and the like, but was I qualified to review the arguments of an expert?

Turns out, writing is more of a meritocracy than a credentially-fuelled aristocracy as I had thought. As long as my writing was…