The Wonder Years

Yes, I am referencing the hit eighties TV sitcom, The Wonder Years, with Fred Savage and Danica McKellar. A question keeps popping up lately, "When did you start writing?" And to answer that question, I need to take you back--way back.

The Early Years:
In elementary school I wrote sentences. My teachers encouraged me to practice my penmanship on the chalkboard. I will behave in class was a recurring theme. I wasn't the model child growing up. Please don't ask my mother for details. Because of my silliness, I found myself in trouble more than once. My love for reading started during these early years. I credit C.S. Lewis and his magic wardrobe.

The Wonder Years:
Ahh, yes, my favorite few years of life spent in prison, I mean junior high and high school. It all started with a history assignment--a ten line patriotic poem. It was a breeze. Others needed my help. I felt called to help them. Our eighth grade teacher quit in the middle of the year. The principal took over. I wrote short stories when I should have been taking notes. After I saw Dead Poets Society, my best friend and I formed our own secret society. We penned poems about love spurned, cuddly kittens, Little Caesar's Pizza, and cute guys who worked at the VCR repair store.

The Rest of the Story:
If you thought I was going to use the header--The Golden Years--you're in trouble! After my creative writing class in college, where I learned to eavesdrop on people's conversations, I realized I wanted to become a writer someday. After graduation, job, marriage, kids, job, one more kid, I decided it was time to make that dream a reality. And with teenagers in the house, I needed to act swiftly, before my prime subjects graduated from high school.

As you know from my last blog entry, I was writing a non-fiction piece on frontier photographer H.H. Bennett, the first person to ever take a photograph of something in motion. I'm a bit obsessed with photography and cameras and their origins. I thought this children's biography would be the stepping stone into publishing fiction. Now, I'm starting with my new contemporary action/adventure mystery thriller, Free Runner. And I just received word from my publisher that they are bumping up production of my book from spring to JANUARY!! I'm working on my website and a Facebook Fan page and trying not to panic in the process.

Maybe you will start your writing career earlier than I did. Read those writing craft books and blogs and write everyday. Read books of all genres. Write a story you would want to read. If you are still stuck in the wonder years, take heart, you will graduate, someday.

#amwriting #writerslife #photography #writetip #freerunner