***Once a Writer - Always a Writer***

Since I became a published author, I’ve been surprised at the interest I’ve received regarding my process and how I come up with the stories I write.  Process is easy to explain, where my stories come from is a little more difficult.  I jokingly tell people I write because it justifies all those voices in my head.  The serious answer is a slightly different version of the joke.  I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have a story idea running through my mind or characters screaming to have their stories told.  When I published Dusk, in a way, it legitimized years of storytelling just for fun.  That’s when I realized I’ve always been an author... I just never told anyone.

Which brings me to another question that seems to surface in conversation.  When did I start to write?  Until recently, I wasn’t sure how to answer that question.  Now, I have an answer. 

Recently, my mother gave me a scrapbook of items she saved over the years.  It was fun to look through a lifetime of memories in one large collection. The book contained a wide range of things; report cards, certificates, teacher notes and a variety of stories and essays I completed... or should I say started... over the years.  To my surprise, there was a short, and I mean very short, story I wrote when I was about six.  Mystery solved, I guess I started writing when I was six.  I was happy to see the words The End.  Most of my stories never made it that far.

To this day, I get a story in my mind, sit down to write that next great novel and about half way through I start to doubt the direction it’s going.  What do I do now?  I power through, sometimes re-evaluate, delete entire sections and shift course, but ultimately end up exactly where my characters are determined to lead me.

It’s funny how the more things change, the more they stay the same.  When I was young, I loved spending time with my Shetland pony (Coalie), riding my tote goat for hours and writing silly stories.

These days, I still enjoy a relaxing horseback ride through a beautiful canyon, a trip on my Harley and yes... writing.

So, here’s to the early years! And in the spirit of nostalgia... I thought I’d share how it all began.  Ironically, I still enjoy writing fantasy stories and a relaxing camping trip.

MY LEPRECHAUN

(Remember, I was only six.  I have improved a bit since then.)

I went to Ireland and I saw a leprechaun sitting on a log.  He was eating something.  I think he saw me because he ran away.  But, I found him and it was in the night time.  I went to his bed and picked him up and took him to my camper.  The next day, I got three wishes.  The first wish was a bike.  My second wish was a pot of diamonds.  My third wish was $500.00.  I took him home with me.

THE END