Today I Met Myself Twenty Years Ago

Today was another landmark day for me as a writer. I didn’t increase my sales rank on Amazon or reach my thousandth like on Facebook. What did happen was, to me, far more important in my progression as a writer.

Today I met a young lady whom I was twenty years ago. 

I was invited, by Robert L. Slater, along with a couple other fellow writers, to do a reading/panel at a local High School. Windward is similar to the small, flexible, alternative high schools that I attended when I was a teenager. We were greeted by a boy with a unicorn horn on his bike helmet, and I immediately felt at home. 

After a couple of teachers worked their juju to quiet down the echo-y gym full of over a hundred students, the readings began.

Joannah Miley bravely took the lead, telling us some of the important and amusing things she learned about herself in the process of writing her first book, then reading a thrilling excerpt from The Immortal Game. 

Then Jesikah Sundin stood up and showed us all how it’s done. Her introduction of herself and her work sounded as natural as if all 100 or so of us had just met her at a party. She read the first few pages of Legacy: The Biodome Chronicles #1 and we were enthralled.

Next was my turn.

I can’t stand in front of a podium without getting pedantic, so I started by telling everyone that I had started writing my first book when I was 14, and it’s taken me nearly 20 years to get to this (this being the copy of Dream of a Vast Blue Cavern which I held up). “My message to you is, don’t wait, and don’t give up. It might take longer than you expect to achieve your dreams.”

That mini-lecture finished, I read the scene upon which the new cover is based. The room was utterly silent during the reading and I think that was the greatest compliment possible. To be able to hold a room of high school kids in silence for five minutes is a feat.

Rob finished things up with a chilling scene from the post-apocalyptic world of All Is Silence. Then it was time for questions. For a moment, all was silence. I waited for the teachers at the back of the room to jump in and get things moving. But to my surprise, a student’s hand went up. 

“This question is for all of you: Where do you get your inspiration?”

And it was like popcorn popping. More and more questions came, fun things like: does music play an important role in your process? How do you come up with names? I found that rather than being difficult to answer, the questions were easy and fun. I’m familiar enough with my own writing process that I didn’t have to struggle to come up with answers. By the time Rob informed everyone that we were out of time, I was actually disappointed that we couldn’t keep going.

Then something amazing happened. The principal of the school came out and presented the Washington Achievement award to the teachers and students for reading excellence. Apparently thousands of high schools compete for this award, so it was no small deal. It felt completely appropriate to be presenting our books to a school that had just been recognized at the state level for its achievements in reading. 

After the assembly, Rob treated us to a marvelous thin-crust pizza from Greene’s Corner. We had a chance to mingle with the students. A girl came up and asked me if I’d always known I wanted to be a writer. I admitted that I’d been writing since I was six, and yes it was always my dream. She told me shyly that she too had started writing at the age of seven and she wanted to be a writer. 

My first thought: oh my god, that’s me, that’s me twenty years ago. There she is, on the precipice. 

My second thought was, I’m looking back at where I was, and I can tell her what I wish someone had told me then. 

So I told her to go for it. I told her that when I was her age, a lot of people told me not to pursue a career in writing because I’d never make any money at it (I don’t mean to discount those who supported my dream–because many of you did. But the critical voices, and my own fears, were stronger for a time.) And because of this, I wasted a lot of time not following the dream in my heart.

She said that people told her that too. I told her not to listen to them. “Just go for it.”

We talked a little more and then lunch was over and she went off to class. She was far more mature, articulate and generally well put-together than I was at that age. I have no doubt that if she sticks with it, she’ll achieve her dream to be an author. She’s already clearly a writer–and I know this because she said “I’m not quite ready to publish my work yet.” This means she can look at her work and discern where it falls in the spectrum of quality. If you can do that, you are a definitely a writer, whether you’re getting paid for it or not.

That brief interaction was more meaningful to me than any amount of pageviews, downloads or likes. That is why I write–to communicate in a meaningful way and inspire other human beings. So in short, today was a huge success.

And the best part is, I get to do it all again next week, at Village Books, Saturday at 7:00 PM in the Readings Gallery down stairs, and you can come!!!

Don’t miss this chance to see myself, Rob, Joannah, Jesikah and our fellow author Michael Sarrow read excerpts from our books and answer your questions about Sci-Fi and Fantasy, writing process, and more! Even better, there will be a giveaway, so be sure to attend for a chance to win one or all of our books for your summer reading adventure!

Click here for details!