We had the good fortune of connecting with Jim Ringel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jim, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I think I’ve always approached my career choices by pursuing the job that seemed like it might be the most fun. The money’s important, of course. And the ethics of where I worked. But fun is what sustains a career. Fun gets me up in the morning and to the desk even when I’m groggy.

I’ve worked in sales, television production, and now for the past fifteen years as a novelist. They’ve all been fun. They all involve mixing it up with people. With sales and working a television production crew, that’s obvious. With writing, the people I meet are the characters I’m creating on the page. They may not be real, but they’re just as fun.

Writing is a spontaneous act. Be-here-now, that’s the way you write good fiction. I love that about it. Plus, I’m Buddhist. I write Buddhist mystery novels. Buddhism teaches that true happiness comes from being fully present in the current moment. Writing fiction is an exercise in practicing exactly that. That’s why I write. Because it’s perfectly in sync with my Buddhist practice.

The other reason I write is because I love stories. I think it was my grade school nuns who first told me I should be a writer because I was a good storyteller, Not that they always believed the stories I told them. Then again, getting in trouble and trying to squiggle out of it, that’s fun too.

I pursued an artistic career because I like stories. Novels, short fiction, jokes people tell–they are all stories. There is nothing more spontaneous than listening to a good story unfold.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
The Lama Rinzen mysteries each begin with the rebirth of Lama Rinzen into one of the six Buddhist realms. Each realm holds a lesson the lama must learn to progress into the next realm and onto the next novel along the path to enlightenment.

On the way the lama stumbles across a crime to solve. Solving the crime could either reveal the realm’s mystery lesson or be a diversion that takes the lama off the path.

Writing novels is journey for me. A questioning of my own assumptions and a stretch into writing something different and provocative. With the pacing of a thriller set in a magically realistic environment, I write the novels not to discover answers but to raise questions. Isn’t that the nature of any true mystery: never settling for canned solutions, always luring us down a path from one question to another?

Art is the act of questioning the obvious. Creativity is an exploration. The end product–the novel, or sculpture, or musical piece–forever morphs and evolves revealing itself in its many facets. My job, the writer’s job is to hone the skills that allow me to witness and write these revelations.

I enjoy reading books that are clear, precise, entertaining, and probing. Stir those elements together and I’m engaged. Those are the lessons I hopefully bring to my writing. That, and an awareness that to write well requires reading deeply. I had the good luck to be raised as a reader, devouring many fantastic stories throughout my life. I learned from each of them. Even those I didn’t care for so much.

As a novelist, I hope to be recognized as one who writes clearly and precisely about the unknown and unsolvable mysteries that make up our lives.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
A visit to Niwot, Colorado should include hiking some the trails the area offers. The North and South Teller Trail for the exercise. Coot Lake for the beauty. McIntosh Lake for the enchantment. Pella Crossing for the bird life.

Bookend those hikes with breakfast and dinner at Cimmini’s Italian Eatery. A delicious and affordable place that offers killer tomato sauce, homemade desserts, a variety of breakfast, lunch, and dinner options, as well as a full bar. Or visit Wheelworks Bicycle Bar for a drink and light bite while waiting for your bike to be tuned up. And Niwot offers one of the Front Range’s best pub experiences at Fritz Brewery, which specializes in a rotating selection German lagers and ales brewed on site.

The Niwot Market is worth any visitor’s time. It has a sushi bar and a fantastic deli for sandwiches and cooked meats. The Market roasts its own coffee beans to purchase and prepare at home or to enjoy right there on the market’s patio or in its dining area. And during summer months Bert Steele and his family host smorgasbord dinners with live music.

Plus, Niwot offers numerous biking and running trails, including the LoBo Trail that stretches east to Sandstone Ranch and west into downtown Boulder. For a little more challenge Boulder County’s foothills trails offer tons of fun for mountain bikers of all abilities.
Honestly, the area’s a fully functioning paradise.
Plus Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park and its abundance of hiking and cross-country ski trails are an easy and scenic drive to the north.

And with an average of 300 sunny days per year, the weather is more of an entertainment than serious barrier standing in the way of a good time.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are many who have guided me, but Lighthouse Writers Workshop in Denver has been a true mentor in my growth as an author. Established in Denver in 1987, Lighthouse offers classes in the craft and business of writing. It’s also a good place to party and socialize with other writers. All writers could use a little socializing in their lives. A great faculty. A great community. Lighthouse makes the lonely craft of writing a lot more fun.

On a deeper level, Roshi Gerry Wicks and the Great Mountain Zen Center have taught me the wonder, discipline, and clear-sightedness to experience and record the world as it is. My Zen meditation and study practice have fostered in me the calm perseverance necessary to sustain my writing career. Roshi Wicks and Roshi Shinko both teach me, the exploring artist, how to experience the world with the openness necessary to keep my writing fluid and alive.

Website: www.jimringel.com

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/jim-ringel-7364822

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jimringelwrite

Facebook: www.facebook.com/JimRingelWrites

Image Credits
Elizabeth Morrow and Gene Hayworth

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutColorado is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.