Inspiration

While doing some weekly planning tonight I had the Golden Globes on in the background. Stephen Spielberg gave a speech that, although might be considered terribly self-indulgent, centered on his inspiration to become a director. And this got me thinking about those who inspired me to want to write short fiction and novels. So here’s my terribly self-indulgent post.

Originally, I wanted to be a comic book artist. Back in the 1980’s those guys were like rock stars and the art seemed to leap off the page straight into my imagination. I spent countless hours trying to learn to draw so I could tell stories graphically. Then I read an interview by Jim Starlin, a comic book artist, writer, and creator, in either Epic Illustrated or Comic Scene. In the interview Starlin stated that he might start writing exclusively because of how long it was taking him to complete the artwork. At that time I hadn’t thought of writing my stories without pictures. That’s when I started writing.

In 1985 I walked into a convenience store and pursued a small carousel of paperback originals. One novel stood out but since $4.25 was a lot in those days, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted it, I decided not to buy the novel. It was a good thing that another horror lover didn’t go into that store in the interim because, for some reason, I couldn’t stop thinking about that novel. In the morning I ran down to the store and bought Darklings by Ray Garton. After reading the book I knew I wanted to be a horror writer.

Then in 2000 I found out my friend and dojo senior Jon Merz had just received a four book deal with Pinnacle.  At that time I had never met anyone who had a book deal and this realization made me believe that getting published wasn’t just a dream but that it was possible. And from that time on I’ve been writing and submitting.