I’ve had a desire to write since I was very young. I’ve always had a very active, vivid, wild and expressive imagination. When I told a story to someone, they’d always listen and find what I had to say fascinating because I was skilled with taking people on a journey. I always explored the "what if" and the unusual. So naturally, I had delightful and entertaining stories to tell.
I can remember all of the poems, short stories and random writings I created in the past. I wrote my first short story at age 9 which turned out to be nearly 40 pages. I'd written stories before but they were random short writings that I played around with. The short story I wrote at this point in time was for a 4th grade class assignment. Each student was instructed to write a 4-5 page short story. I decided to write a short story on one of my favorite games at the time: Alex Kidd in Miracle World. It was a game for the now defunct but ever-nostalgic Sega Master System console.
Our teacher wanted each of us to present our stories in front of the class by reading it aloud. I was excited about this and wanted to share what I had written with classmates eagerly. Once it was my turn to take center stage in front of the class and deliver my story, I remember seeing the expressions of several classmates as they listened. Many stopped what they were doing, as if they were in mild trances and their eyes became fixated on me. They were captivated by my Alex Kidd fan fiction story and all of its surreal descriptions and scenes. The teacher was very impressed with my tale and immediately praised my writing after I finished presenting. She gave me an A on the assignment and said that I should write more stories because I had natural talent.
I felt great about her support and very proud of my writing. Toward the middle of that year, I began experimenting with funnies, comic strips and various accompanying illustrations. I would show the same instructor my creations and she continued encouraging me and said she found my strips amusing and humorous. I was certainly inspired to write further. While waiting to be picked up after-school , I began writing poems with illustrations on blank paper that came in a multitude of colors. I’d go around showing these works to various kids on the playground, after-school counselors and other teachers to see their reactions. I had as much fun revealing my writings to others as I did creating them. It was my own quirky way of entertaining myself.
Writing poetry became an intense habit. Over the next several years, I wrote many poems and my writing became more sophisticated and expressive. I started to write poetry not only as a way to creatively express myself, but as a form of therapy to explore and purge my emotions. As an eccentric and solitary child, my writing and artwork were my best friends.
Once I got into high school, I took an active interest in expanding my writing into very descriptive scenes, longer forms of poetry, lists of bizarre make-believe diseases and ailments, the development of my own secret language and the creation of a self-philosophy and spiritual belief system I called Jeoydo. I had various notebooks and original pamphlets for my creations. I'd sneak time to go into the computer lab during breaks, when it was empty, to type up and print out as much of my writing as I could. I went around promoting some of my personal philosophies and ideas through self-created booklets with detailed descriptions of beliefs, ideals and principles in the guise of a small organization or social club for people to join.
Of course, many students thought I was strange. They assumed I was on the path of becoming a notorious cult leader and they saw these actions as more validation of my oddness. I roused curiosity and intrigue nonetheless. When I wanted to get away and write further, I’d seek solace in quiet, remote and empty spaces behind the fine arts building, where no one could disturb me with loud noises and other annoying distractions.
I actually began my scene description projects in junior high as I had always done and carried this habit into high school; I’d show random students, fellow band members and some of my English, creative writing and language instructors during class breaks at nutrition and lunch. I continued on with this throughout the remainder of my high school years. Some of my writings were very morbid with elements of dark fantasy and acute black humor that not everyone could stomach or understand but they were still vastly imaginative and distinctive.
I considered the reactions of others to be a form of conceptual art. My creative process would begin with my ideas. After that, I began writing out my ideas in some form and I'd present them to others, but the reactions of others would finalize the creative endeavor. My desire to show others might have seemed like an act for approval or attention but for the most part, it was about entertaining myself. Others were just spectators in the process. Of course, there were a few instructors along the way that offered me much support and encouragement and they will always be remembered for that.
When I went to college, I continued to write in my spare time or whenever I felt the urge and got a chance to jot down my ideas. My mother purchased a Brothers word processor for me before I left for college. It had a monitor, a keyboard and could accept disks for saving work and loading software. I used it all the time and stored many of my older and new writings in it. However, as the priority of college and the dissonance of young adult life took over, I started to lose touch with my writing rituals.
In my late twenties, I felt an inner calling to get back into writing regularly and that’s when I began thinking about my writing in regards to career development. I had taken many paths during college to decide "what I wanted to be when I grew up” and I eventually got my degree in Visual Communication as a graphic designer and illustrator. I don’t regret the academic decision to ultimately pursue a design degree because it has allowed me to gain many skills and to think expansively on ways I can illustrate my writings as an illustrator.
I explored the path of becoming a writer further as I reached my late 20s. Initially I had some technical notions of what it means to become a writer. The list was very concrete. It started off with these objectives:
- Revisit and read more fiction works. Read regularly.
- Participate in writers' groups and events. Network.
- Keep a writing journal and carry it everywhere to record ideas. Record.
- Write something daily. Develop praxis.
These are still great ideas and I make sure to incorporate each of them into my life on a daily basis. However, I have been inspired to rethink and expand my list of objectives when I think of what it means to become a writer and in striving to be a great one.
I feel it is very important to focus more on developing spirit, heart and intuition as a writer. To explore and experience the world around you. The technical aspect of the craft is important, but as the late Sloan Wilson stated in a reprinted 1962 article, "How to Become a Writer":
The important thing of course is to learn to live fully, to love with kindness as well as passion, to hate the right things and even right people effectively rather than self-destructively, to worship well...
Once a person learns to live well. he or she is provided with many avenues of self-expression, all of them as good as writing, and some better.
In essence, if a writer can cultivate thinking, feeling and exploring, then he/she can learn how to write, because he/she has something to write about. Writing is more about intuition than it is about being grammatically correct and efficient; basically taking the academic approach.
It is crucial to possess and constantly nurture a curious nature. Curiosity leads to more exploration. Barry Levinson, a prolific filmmaker, director, producer and screenwriter with razor-sharp with, stated, "One of the things about being a writer is you have to be inquisitive and open to things that...rattle in your head."
This is where, as a writer, one can turn theory or concept into something very energetically tangible. As a result, the writing flow kicks in once you allow creative improvisation to work its magic. But again, that openness must be there to begin with.
As writers, we accumulate a great deal of junk. But the thing is that it's not merely junk. It has the potential to be transformed into literary gold. - Thomas E. Kennedy
Aspiring writers need to respect and preserve fragmented legacies of their creative thinking. This means that the foundation to developing amazing writing ideas can be found in random scraps, abandoned terms, phrases and short stories written down in folders and old journals, souvenir collections, photographs and scattered notebooks. These are all items and resources that should never be thrown away. There are many writers, such as Thomas E. Kennedy, who've gone on to create profound and award-winning literary works based on brief notes and writings that they found on scraps of paper in an old chest or drawer from long ago.
This leads me to my next point. I believe it is important to seek inspiration in everyday events and in the most unlikely and unorthodox ways. I am inspired by conversations, music, film, window shopping, purchases, color, texture, tastes, sights, sounds, emotions, trips, emotion, dreams, theoretical thought, gestures, symbols, icons, concepts, other people and much more. I find and see inspiration everywhere. It's necessary to live in and with passion. Passion awakens the senses and our sensitivity to everyday events and we begin to experience the world in ways we were formerly turned off to.
Writing is largely about self-revelation and the best and most established writers understand this and incorporate authenticity and sincerity in their writing. Being authentic comes with courage, a deep understanding about oneself and a strong desire to discover more within the inner folds. Everything we write reveals some element of truth about ourselves not only as writers but as individuals. To write freely is to abandon fear and doubt.
Last but not least, writing should involve great experimentation and adventure. Try many different forms and styles of writing without focusing too much on the mechanics of writing. Remember to have fun and to play. Writing should be your playground.
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