Writing

I did not grow up with a desire to write.  Oh, I know, a lot of authors were born with the need to express themselves through writing.  For me, though, the inner being that is the writer was born during my freshman year of college at Loretto Heights College in Denver.  I wrote a short story that I so thoughtfully called, "A Mystery: Number 1."  I wrote it on the Apple IIe located in the computer lab at the college.  I kept it for a long, long time.  Over time, I have moved a lot of times, and somewhere along the way, that story got lost in the shuffle.  Though I miss that story, it lit the spark of desire to express myself through writing.

I enrolled in a creative writing class led by Dr. Bob Johnson where my passion grew along with my skills under his guidance.  As the school came to its end (it shut down the year I was enrolled), I wrote a piece about the sandstone walls crumbling (figuratively, of course).  He read that piece aloud and hearing my words come to life filled me with pride, fear, and I was embarrassed. Why embarrassed? I have no idea, but I have since learned that many authors get that same feeling.  Perhaps it is because we are hearing our intimate thoughts expressed aloud. Who knows.

As time went on, though, I moved to Arkansas and set writing aside as I finished my degree, got married, and my wife and I started our life and kids came in, careers were being developed, and life pushed forward.  Every now and then, I would jot down a few lines, but nothing I felt worth saving.

Then, I began my Master's program, enrolling in Henderson State University's Master of Liberal Arts program.  I chose to concentrate on the writing specialization.  In 1998, I had a piece published in the school's literary journal.  That was "Hero," which appears in my first short story collection.  As part of my Graduate Project, I wrote the first chapter of a story.  That was called, "Summer of Seven" which later became the launching pad for the novel, "Summer Breaks."  In 2009, I joined nanowrimo.org and took the 50,000 words challenge.  I met the challenge and so "Summer Breaks" took shape.  Six months following NaNoWriMo, I published the novel.

In addition to the two books I've published so far, I have also been very fortunate enough to have won a contest (actually, I co-won since they thought my ideas and another person's ideas were both spot-on) describing my thoughts and ideas for a baseball card collecting segment on EPSN.

I spend a lot of time writing for various blogs as an outlet for my hobbies and interests.  My next goal is to write my second novel and become a two-time winner of NaNoWriMo.  Eventually, I'd like to fulfill the wish of my daughter, who recently said, "Daddy, I wish you could stay home and just write books."
 
What have I written and where can you find me in the vast wild world of cyberspace? How about here:
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