Shit…you actually clicked on the about page? Wasn’t so sure anyone would care enough to do that.
Guess I should write something then. Wouldn’t want to be rude…
My writing journey started when I was 12 years old…or maybe 11…how old was I in fifth grade? I suppose it doesn’t really matter. Our class was assigned a project that required us to write a short story. Could be about anything we wanted, just had to be original. I decided to write about monsters. Yes, I was way ahead of Pixar on that one; no, I have not considered suing them. My monsters weren’t very friendly, or entertaining for that matter, but they were something that I got to create. They were mine, and that was fun.
My story came out to be twenty-seven pages (the limit for class was eight), and I was hooked. I wrote six of those little treasures before graduating to character-based stories, which focused – you guessed it – on superheroes. Sure, they were total knockoffs of Superman and Green Lantern and the like, but they still gave me the chance to look into a person’s perspective for the first time. They helped me explore writing about emotion. It was much simpler back then, I’ll admit that. My heroes were either happy, sad or angry people. Not a lot of scope there. As a 12 year old, I wasn’t privy to things like shame and embarrassment, regret and self-loathing, or elation and infatuation yet. I got there eventually, as most people do, though there are moments I wish I could go back. High-five if you can relate to that.
Anywho, when I was thirteen, I got the sudden inspiration to write a book. And that’s when the Infinity Chronicles were born. Back then it was a single book, and only about 144 pages typed out on our old PC. Fun fact: it was originally called Beyond Infinity, which I thought was a great title. Why did I change it? If you’ve ever seen Toy Story, you can probably guess. Does it seem like Pixar has me bugged?
The next twenty-five years saw three major re-writes, with the last one starting in 2013 while driving with my in-laws to Myrtle beach for vacation. I hadn’t looked at the thing in ten years at that point. But for some reason, something just clicked during that drive, and the story just started to make sense in a lot of detailed ways. It’s been a bit of an obsession ever since (you can ask my wife – sorry, honey). Although, if you’ve ever had an idea that you just had to get out into the world, you’ll probably understand.
Now…finally…it’s ready. I hope you enjoy reading the story as much as I did writing it. Here’s to creativity.
Other Stuff:
I am not a writer by trade. I actually eschewed the creative thing in college for some hard science. I graduated from college with a major in biology and a minor in kinesiology with an eye on going to medical school. When I got talked out of that (by an orthopedic surgeon, of all people), I settled on going to physical therapy school. That’s where I met my wife, Taya, which made the whole decision worth it. I’ve been a physical therapist for almost 13 years at the time of writing this, and I’ve gotten a lot of distinctions in the profession. I’m a registered Orthopedic Clinical Specialist, a certified manual therapist twice over, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Orthopedic Manual Therapy. I also teach hands-on courses to other therapists, most of whom are older and more experienced than I am. I am a national examiner for manual therapy certifications, and am a Certified Fellowship Instructor through a post-graduate institute. My business card looks really good.
So why turn to writing? Because it’s always been the dream. And I’m at the point in my life where dreams mean more than credentials. If you’ve ever felt strung out at your job, you know what I’m talking about.
I’ve got an almost-eight-year old son, Ryder, who is the center of my entire world. He’s slowly following his dad into the underground cult that is hockey, which is oh-so-much fun for me. He’s smart and strong, and his laugh is enough to turn even a vile villian’s heart into slow oozing butter. He hasn’t quite developed the compulsive love for the Broncos that I have, but I’m confident that he’ll get there. Wink, wink.
So that’s it. That’s me. If you’ve ever felt like you’re missing your passion in life, whether that’s for writing or anything else, post a comment. I’m always happy to talk about it.
Cheers!