I have often been asked by friends, coworkers, and fellow writers how I got into writing. Here’s the short version.
As a child I became fascinated with Tom Sawyer. I wanted to be the female equivalent, making my own adventures. I believe that was the first spark that ignited my wild imagination. A few years later I discovered Carolyn Keene and a new mystery was behind every corner. I spent many summer days in my tree house, or at the picnic table filling multiple spiral notebooks with story ideas and fantastic adventures. I still have many of those notebooks.
When I chose a career field I followed the safe practical route. While I loved my literature classes and the process of writing research papers, I continued my pursuit towards a B.S. in Cartography (map making). I was reprimanded for being a daydreamer and a career in writing was simply out of the question for practical purposes.
The degree in Science landed me a position with the Department of Defense. It was a challenging and interesting field. During this time I authored government documents and training manuals. In my spare time at home, I wrote scandalous tales of espionage and romantic mushy tales of love. The government job paid well until I took an early retirement to start the next phase of my life as a full-time mom. During this time I began delving into my writing aspirations.
I joined a critique group where I sharpened my skills. Just before she passed away, my mother signed me up for an online writing course as a gift. Through my instructor’s encouragement and direction I gained the confidence to begin submitting my work. Our local paper liked my work, and soon I had an Opinion column. Unfortunately, the newspaper went out of business and my writing outlet ended. That’s when I took the plunge into blogging. I love it! My blogs are fairly short and allow me the time to continue my pursuit of being a published novelist.
Providing target data for the military defenses was exciting and paid well, but it didn’t satisfy my cravings to express my individuality. It’s through writing that I feel I express myself best. The creation process is often messy, and difficult to follow, but when I’m finished there is a sense of satisfaction that nothing else has provided.
