James Collins Thompson
When I write, I draw on interests I cultivated while studying Philosophy as an undergraduate and graduate student at the University of Virginia I understand now that I enjoyed Philosophy because I am interested in the History of Ideas. I write about Ideas, what they encompass, how they form, how they change as they move from place to place, what happens to them as they do, and the impact they have as men and women apply them..
In the real world, ideas advance from before to after, from back to front. My objective as an author is to follow them as they advance out of the thickets in one person’s mind and through the thickets of another person’s mind.
Ideas change according to the circumstances and purposes of the people who have them. I therefore get to know the people in my narratives and how they think. If they shout “Fire!” in a crowded room, I know whether they are being malicious or trying to save lives.