Review Fix Exclusive: Brent Williams Talks ‘Out of the Woods’ And More

Review Fix chats with author Brent Williams, who discusses the creative process and emotional journey behind his upcoming book, Out of the Woods.

Review Fix: What inspired this book?

Brent Williams: I needed to understand my own depression – see it, describe it, learn about it. I’d had enough of being thrown around by it. I was running away, ignorant and in denial. Writing about it was the start of my journey out of the woods.

Review Fix: What comics do you read? Why?

Williams: Stories about people’s lives interest me most. I want to connect with people who  express themselves honestly and simply.

Review Fix: What authors have had the biggest effect on you?

Williams: Herman Hesse. Through his characters he reveals so much about his own life and internal struggles. I love his exploration of ideas, philosophy and spirituality. He writes so poetically as well.

Review Fix: What was the research process like for this?

Williams: My own personal therapy was the most important research – learning about how I think and behave and all the unconscious influences from my life that are brought to bear on this. Journal writing and plotting my progress through a mood chart were so valuable. And, delving into all the scientific research was also very encouraging.

Review Fix: What did you learn about yourself through this?

Williams: In no small way I learned to live again, to accept and love myself. I also discovered there are so many things I could do to build my own recovery mentally and physically.

Review Fix: What you want people to get out of this book?

Williams: I hope people will feel supported and loved. I know how painful depression is and I wanted to share my own story to give sufferers and their families some encouragement and hope along with some practical strategies, too.

Review Fix: What’s next?

Williams: As I am also the publisher of my book, I have plenty to do in getting the book out into the world. I do have other graphic novel ideas in the mental health field and look forward to these when Out of the Woods finally leaves home.

Review Fix: Anything else you’d like to add?

Williams: Writing the book has been hugely therapeutic for me so I would encourage people to express themselves in any way they can through: words, music, dance, art, drama, whatever works for them. Try any of these even if you have never done them before. You will be surprised how much creativity there is in you.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 13821 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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