Blessed with a vivid imagination, I developed a love of reading before I began school. I remember devouring information from a set of encyclopedias my father purchased with the little money we had, but I also read many cereal boxes at breakfast, so I suppose my love of reading was more a fascination with and enjoyment of reading written words than with learning.
Reading fiction has never required illustrations because I always saw the characters and actions in my own mind, like a movie. That would eventually lead to some disappointments* with movies later made from favorite books. Not always, but even with the not so good ones I’m always happy for the authors to have had books made into movies simply because I loved their books so much.
My love of writing also began very young when I convinced siblings and cousins to perform a play at a family holiday gathering. Much giggling of children and laughter by adults ensued.
I wrote poems and stories that were ‘published’ in a county book of local children’s writing. Then my third-grade teacher and the principal of the small school I attended decided to create two or three little books of my work. I do wish I had held on to copies of those. If nothing else, I’d remember the story behind “Why the Sky Is Blue and the Grass Is Green”. An important literary classic now lost to history, I suppose.
But my love of writing became lost as I navigated life and a career, with the exception of some very heart-felt poems about how hard life and love can be as a young adult. Those years also included the beginnings of and many years of rewrites for a difficult memoir about struggles with trauma and the ensuing challenges of coping with it (that’s the unquiet mind part).
Later, when my father passed away, his wallet was given to my sister, and she very kindly returned to me a cut-out piece of paper he had held onto through the years – a loving poem about my father that I’d written when I was nine or ten.
Then a colleague and good friend who also enjoyed writing challenged me to participate in National Novel Writing Month (NANOWRIMO, for those familiar with it). I wrote When Robert Died in a month and was finally back to my love of writing. Strangely, my writing process also includes seeing a movie in my mind, but one that I can direct. I just watch the movie and write what I see.
Pieces of Heaven was written from my heart.
Alien Affect is written from a love of Sci-Fi, but still with the outlook that humans are just human, after all.
*Some of my notable exceptions from the disappointment in book to movie adaptations:
- The Princess Bride (a classic!)
- The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings (major win, wonderful scenery and acting)
- Carrie (different from my imaginings, but still just as good)
- to be continued in the blog and include a list of disappointments…
If you’ve read one of my books and would like to chat:
revoyhamilton (@) gmail (dot) com