The Joy of Making Things Up
Thanks, Elizabeth. I really appreciate this chance to introduce myself to your audience.
A week ago, I released my debut novel, a mystery-thriller titled Float the Boat. Writing is a new career for me. I spent the first one overseas, working in public health roles with the Peace Corps in Korea and in the Central African Republic. Later, I worked for two NGOs that ran an English language program for Vietnamese refugees in Indonesia. My next stop was the corporate world, where I spent several decades in the shipbuilding, railroad, and automotive industries in various purchasing and leadership roles. Without the first two careers under my belt, I doubt I would’ve crossed the finish line in this third one.
Today I’d like to talk about my favorite chapter in Float the Boat. It comes three-quarters of the way through, and is told as a flashback. Instead of talking specifics, I’ll talk about what motivated me to include it.
When I was still wet behind the ears and working in Indonesia, I had a boss who, for many, was a tough cookie. He worked in our regional office, visited us occasionally, and kept his finger on the pulse with frequent telexes. To go along with an abundance of talent, he had a “Type A” personality, and it grated some people. We got along well from the moment we first met. He told me about his recent surgery to remove a growth on his heel and how excited he was to be able to jog again.
Flash forward eight years when he told me he had Stage 4 skin cancer and a grim prognosis. In those days, we lived several hours apart, and I spent time with him on weekends as he prepared for the day when he would be gone. His wife was an immigrant, and he leveraged her talents and set up two businesses. Meanwhile, he was all-in on beating the odds, and I marveled at his optimism and spirit. Two years went by. Then one day it became too much for him to withstand, and he passed away.
What I like most about this new career is I can pretend he beat it and explain how, and that’s what I did. While I was reading some books by Harry Turtledove and Robert Conroy, well-known authors of “what if” alternative historical fiction, the idea for the chapter popped into my head. What followed was months and months of fretting about writing the chapter. I remember telling myself the book would be fine without it; nobody but me would miss it. Time went by, and I kept putting it off. Anyone who’s written a book probably knows that feeling well. You end up cursing yourself for conceiving it, knowing how difficult it’s going to be to write.
At last, the day came to write it. It’s one of the longest chapters in the book, and, to my surprise, it turned out to be one of the easiest to write. The words just flowed from my fingers and, despite the eagle eyes of Elizabeth and others, barely needed any revisions. Several early readers told me they also enjoyed the chapter. Now, every time I read it, I experience a new joy, the Joy of Making Things Up! It’s fuel in my tank and I hope it never runs out.
Float the Boat is available now on Amazon and other literary outlets.
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