Apr 18 2007
How I Started Writing
I realized while trying to shape this into a coherent post why I started writing.
Since my childhood friends and I first split into separate social circles, I prided myself on never succumbing to peer pressure. Until seventh grade, the kids who later became the jocks and cheerleaders regularly hung out at my house, and vice versa. Throughout high school, I was friends with everybody during class time, but after the final bell rang, we were freaks, geeks, and jocks, just like anywhere else in the world.
It wasn’t a matter of money. I did what most kids my age did, which in our town consisted of one roller rink and one video arcade/billiard hall. I never had conflicts with those who became the popular kids, and I don’t recall ever holding anything against them. I just didn’t like to do the things they did.
Except kiss members of the opposite sex.
One fateful night in eighth grade at The Electric Cowboy, a friend who straddled the line between band geek and jock asked if I wanted to join a game of spin the bottle. I tore myself away from Omega Race’s monochrome screen and followed him, stumbling through the dark to a party barge parked out back. There, social cells melded into an amoeba of pubescent desire. If you had lips and a tongue, and didn’t stink, then you were in.
I had been friends with all of them in elementary and middle school, but after that arousing night, we all went back to our own corners of the world.
I lived almost five miles outside of town, up a mountain. The other kids and I weren’t exactly riding our bikes to each other’s homes, and my brother was old enough to drive himself to see his friends. I faced my first social dilemma — my friends had split up and I was powerless to bring them back together. Alone in the house at night, except for my dad, I holed up in my room and wrote stories.
At first, I did it to spell out fantasies of a future where I married that pretty girl from band camp (stop laughing) and had dinner with all my childhood friends, popular or not. I was either a doctor, the lead singer in a rock band, or a doctor who was the lead singer in a rock band. Then I started making up my own characters.
My closest friend — emotionally, intellectually, and geographically — encouraged me to add dragons and swordplay to my fiction. I did so exactly once, and the unedited result is available (for historical purposes) online.
Not only was I writing stories in my room at night, but now I had thrown in magic and mythical beasts. If one needed to catch a train to leave Coolville, I wouldn’t have to buy my ticket; I was writing it.
After I got my driver’s license, now in a new town where the kids hadn’t known me all my life, I got out more and the writing ground to a halt. The harder homework and my desire to do well in school didn’t help, but a few creative writing assignments in AP English kept my interest alive.
I dated a few girls and had a lot of good friends. Shortly after my senior year began, less than a year after moving back to my hometown, I fell for the new girl and neglected my other relationships. I’ve always been girl crazy.
My writing took a backseat to actual time in the backseat.
I wasn’t abused as a kid. I never did drugs, and never was bullied (except for that one close call). I never was a swinging single. Even without much inspiration from my own past (and/or an intense aversion to pissing off those who are a part of it), I crank out stories here and there.
Not lost on me is the irony that this entire post is a story about my past. I hope it doesn’t make Stacye mad that I told everybody I nicknamed her “the biter” after that spin the bottle game. Or didn’t I mention that?
To all those who have enjoyed my stories in the past, I apologize for the dry spell. The regular day job gets in the way, and writing is a distant second to my involvement in something much more important than children’s petty social segregation — building and maintaining a family.
Keep your eyes peeled, though. I have some things I’ve been kicking around.
Ok, I’m DYING to know if Shan’s ever uttered the words “and one time, in band camp…….” *LOL*
And who doesn’t remember playing spin the bottle as a kid… mostly to kiss just ONE girl. (yes, you’d have to kiss the ones you don’t want to kiss, just to get to the one you DO want to kiss)
Mark, have you ever considered writing a full length online novel like SOS?
Was the Electric Cowboy the real name of that place? Did a teenage Debra Winger hang out there? The hangout where I grew up was named The Wizard’s Den, but alas, we had no Emma Watson.
Dave - Well, Shannon never has because she’s never been. That girl and I exchanged letters for about a year after band camp ended, and I hung out with her and couple of her friends a couple years later while they drove around Little Rock. We didn’t click at all. Funny.
BK - That was the real name. It was hugely popular for video games, pool, and snooker. Debra Winger was nowhere near the place, dang it.
The Wizard’s Den? Now that’s geeky. But, mine sounded redneck, so it’s a draw.
You realise the first thing I had to do after reading this post was google Omega Race to see if it’s one that I’ve played in the past? I have.
And counter to what Dave said, I can recall no instances from my sordid youth where I actually played Spin The Bottle. I do remember the first girl I ever kissed, and she had to chase me around a tree to do it. (Even then, as now, she was a little bit older than I was. Apparently, I have a thing for older chicks. I think we were about 6 and 7 at the time, or something.)
I really do enjoy the writing you provide when you can, Mark. It’s reading fun stuff like that I hope will inspire me to try my hand at my own bit of fiction when I decide to make the time for it.
I had very little involvement in the faux sex play of the puberty years, darn it. :(
Anyway…nice entry.
Dave - I forgot to address your question.
A couple of my online efforts have been short novel length (you just couldn’t tell because you read short chunks over a period of time). These links won’t show up very well, but they were Falcon and Wall. “Full length online novel” is an intimidating term to someone whose mind jumps around as much as mine does.
As far as writing something “like SOS” goes? I enjoy reading works by CBB, but I’ve never imagined myself in the same league. His ideas and his craft are at another level. I can achieve at least one of those with more practice.
Simon - Of course you did! And I’m glad. I’ll have to try that online version of the game when I get home.
First girl I kissed was in first grade (peck on the cheek stuff). Hers also was the first phone number I memorized, and I still know it.
My band camp girl was older, but that was my last experience with an older woman. Well, except for the girl in “Ashes of Dawn.”
Alvis - Some would argue that you didn’t miss much, and most would argue that you came out sitting pretty.
Such a sad story, Mark. You coulda been a cool kid if not for the dragons… ;)
But I’m glad you write. It’s fun to read what you put out here, both fiction and non. Keep on sharing and we’ll keep reading.
I don’t remember when I started writing, but I found the dragons pretty quickly too. Somewhere during junior high I switched from swords to lasers…and that wasn’t much cooler in the scheme of things
And I never played spin the bottle. Had very little contact with the oppisite sex until late high school. Had my head too far in other worlds to notice the one I was actually living in. Looking back, I can see pretty clearly that there were girls who had crushes on me…but I was too distracted/clueless to notice. I often think that my youth could have been a very different time for me if I’d have had a bit more confidence. But since I can’t really complain about where I am now…I have to be happy with how things went. Sure, I never got to kiss Sherry…but I have a killer story arch about the revolution that finally leads to the fall of the US (with mutants and lasers no less). Maybe it was a fair trade ;)
I loved reading this, Mark. And everybody else too.
I actually got to laugh along with the band camp reference, as I (finally) watched American Pie over the winter. Ok, I’m slow to follow a crowd, always have been. Except for the time at Bobby Wing’s birthday party when I was 13 and played Spin the Bottle. That’s all I have to say about that…
Moksha - That was my one and only time to play that game, I believe. Now, let’s see those stories you dreamed up.
Linda - I hoped you laughed at that movie at least some.
And I’m glad you played spin the bottle.