Back in the Day: A Fun Interview

Lady Beth just emailed me an interview and I thought other readers might enjoy this peak into my past--a little insight as to how I got so whacked-out in the head. ;-)

Did you take any college classes to become a writer and if so what classes did you take? 

I didn't get a degree in creative writing; my degree was in English/Education so that I could teach English and Reading. There was, after all, no guarantee that I would get published or be able to make living with my writing. That said, all those English grammar classes and literature classes really did help. I think the most helpful class for me was contemporary poetry. The teacher, a published poet named Kathy Mangan, was absolutely brilliant. She taught me so much about the importance of EVERY word, about the emotional power in every word, and about precise language.

Bouncing baby bat at age 1. Note the footy pajamas. And that's my mom holding me.

 How did you find out you wanted to be a writer?   

 

6th grade. The school had a Halloween short story contest and I won a big chocolate cat! Writing = chocolate, what's not to like? Just kidding. That was the first hint that I loved to create with words. It wasn't until much later that I began to think writing was maybe something God wanted me to do. I started writing stories for my students, and I began to see that these stories were having an impact on my students. The lights came on.

Me, age 8. I'm a little excited. Note the lovely 70's curtains!

 

Did you want to be a 'funny and funky' writer or did you want to be a 'serious and mysterious' writer? 

 

Sweet, original question. I think more the serious and mysterious. I've always had a knack for thinking up creepy or just plain "odd" situations. Scenes that scream out for some kind of search or question. I have at least 20-30 story concepts waiting in a digital folder. Hopefully, God willing, I will get to write them all.

Tons of adventures as a kid. Many of these were in Panama City, Florida, with my best friend Hal. Incidentally, Hal was a little bit of a model for Robby Pierson in The Door Within Trilogy.

Did you always have a crazy imagination when you were a kid?  

This shot was from the "Band Days," about 1985 thru 1989. These guys are still best friends of mine.

Yes, very much so. I was the 4th child, the last in line, the baby so to speak. My next nearest sibling was a whole 5 years older, so there wasn't a lot of playtime with siblings. I ended up playing by myself. I drew a ton--often getting in trouble in school for drawing in class! Oops. It might have had something to do with the fact that I was making WHOOSH sounds and laser beam sounds--aloud--while I was drawing. Double oops. And, if you happened to come by my house on a summer day, you might have scene me racing around with a Star Wars landspeeder in one hand and a Tie Fighter in the other. I constantly invented my own stories and plot lines. Imagine me up in a tree with Darth Vader saying to a crabapple, "Luke, I am your father." lol

Thanks for the great interview!
-WtB