Writing Wednesday: Me

Writing Wednesday

Me

Most of the time, we really do not know much about the person who wrote the books and stories we read. Most indie authors will never get that massive attention to get their life stories known. I imagine some of us do not want our stories known.

I am friends with several indie authors on Facebook, but even then, do we really get to know them? Most of the time, we will get little bits and pieces of their lives, but do we know that they played basketball in grade school? Or that they spent their summers walking seed cornfields for the seed corn company Dekalb Ag? (For you Georgia people, the L is pronounced.)

Well, I did both of those. I actually played organized basketball all through high school. I also played intermural in college and then again in the Navy. I was also involved with track and cross country. My best mile time was around 5:12, as best I can remember. My best 3-mile (5K) cross country time was in the 18-minute range. Best basketball game I played; I scored 22 points and had 14 rebounds.

I was an above-average student in high school and college. Oddly I had little interest in writing or math, so I became an  Engineer and now an author. During my studies, I had to take writing classes and did pretty well in them. I never really had the drive to be better like some students did in them, but I would surprise my teachers with some interesting papers. I hope that I continue to do that with my books.

College, for me, was a technical college that was focused on Mechanical design. Computer-Aided Drafting/Design was just becoming a significant technology, which was the focus of my studies. All the while I was in school, I felt I lacked something. Even after I graduated and went to work, I was not happy or satisfied with my jobs. As fortune would happen, I was one of the first casualties in an unknown divorce war where I was working. The owner was bankrupting the company to give his wife nothing. I was laid off in early January of 1990.

The next Monday, I went to the Navy recruiter and enlisted. I began my Navy time on February 21, 1990. I found what I was missing. Yes, I loved my time serving and was devastated when I was injured. There are blog posts about that, so make sure to read them. I was also married, and my wife never did like the Navy. When the decision to either stay in or leave with eh medical discharge came, I took her advice. It was one of the dumbest decisions I had ever made in my life.

Although that decision was a very poor one, I would not be where I am today without making it. Even knowing all of the emotional pain that followed, I would still do it again. I am remarried and thrilled where my life has taken me. Plus, I might have never begun writing.

Valerie has told me for years to write a book. She knew I could do it but just never had the drive to do it. Over the years, I tried to write a book, but nothing ever stuck. When I changed jobs about 3 years ago, I had issues with sleeping. I had read an article on improving your sleep, and part of the article said to overload your brain when trying to go to sleep. So, I created a story I would run overnight after night. I really did the trick. Each night I took it further. Then one day, on my commute, I began talking to myself about the story. I added a love interest, and my imagination took off. I did this for about 6 months before I began to write it down.

And some other information about me. I love classic rock and old movies. I am also a big history nerd. I live in the Northeast Georgia mountains smack in the middle of a national forest. During my downtime from everything else I do, I am a US Swim stroke and Turn official. My granddaughter is a competitive swimmer. She is a Georgia State record holder in the 100 Mix IM Realy for 9 and under. I also am a photographer, although I have recently stopped doing that regularly. My wife and I also run a small business from our home. The list of what we do is rather long.

And to back up a little bit. I grew up and spent a good portion of my life in a small town in northern Illinois, Lindenwood. I also spent time in Fulton and Peoria, Illinois. During my Navy time, I was in Norfolk and too Great Lakes Naval Base. In the last couple of decades, I have lived in Georgia.

During my travels, I’ve been to 5 continents, crossed the arctic circle, traveled through the Suez canal, and seen a good many interesting places. Yeah, there is more to me than even this, but it is a good start and far more than you get in those “About Me” sections. Besides, I couldn’t think of what else to write for today.