ADAPT AND MOVE FORWARD
L. E. Merithew
Others probably found silver linings in the events of the past year. Most likely, the outcomes are different each time.
For me, it spurred a commitment to a path I held in abeyance for at least 8 years, possibly the bulk of my life. Specifically, I am embarking on the writing career I intended.
Why writing?
As a pre-teen, I read a book describing a revolution on an Earth colony planet. The colonists wanted to break away from Earth and govern themselves. Everything in the story ran parallel to the American Revolution, right down to some of the slogans.
Memories fade, but I think it was an early juvenile/young adult novel by Robert Silverberg. It may even have been Revolt on Alpha C. It certainly fits. I finished reading, thinking,”He made money writing this? I can do just as well, maybe better.” Which is what I set out to do. 50 years later I have not given up. Become inspired by someone, preferably one of the best ever.
I encountered a number of people in my life who discounted my intention to be a writer. In younger days, the attitude was condescending. “That’s nice, but seriously, what do you want to do with your life?” Others, such as a long-deceased brother-in-law, felt I would never amount to a “pimple on his ass” as he phrased it, simply because I spent 16 months before getting a standard job in the early 80s after being asked to leave college.
Forget it being a time of well over 10% unemployment nationwide. Where I lived, the then-largest employer announced they were accepting job applications. The line of applicants extended out of the HR office and the building itself. It continued another tenth of a mile to the road passing the factory. From there, it went another mile into the heart of the town’s business district. All hoping for one of a handful of job offers.
He wasn’t the only one with that view. My recently-passed sister-in-law complained about my lack of jobs as well. That is, until she realized that my older brother’s paycheck wasn’t enough anymore to cover the bills by itself. A month into her job search (at the same time,) she discovered she had put in scores of applications, and wasn’t even getting interview offers.
How does this relate to writing? The 16 month period everyone complained about was my most productive period of sitting in front of the typewriter and actually writing for submission. By time I got to the typewriter though, I had spent weeks or months writing projects out by hand, editing as I went. That way, when I typed the stories up, they were already as close to complete as I thought I could make them.
A career progression
Less than a decade following these hurdles, I buried my mother, for whom I had been serving as caregiver. 7 years later, I relocated to the American Southwest.
In 1996, I had my biggest breakthrough. I entered the Christmas story contest held by the local newspaper, the Santa Fe New Mexican. I moved to other projects until I received a phone call (back in the days when phone calls were real things, not endless scams.) The editor introduced himself, explaining they chose me as the runner-up winner in the contest, wanting some additional background.
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Hey, $100 always helps.
Given the contest terms, I probably will never be able to reprint the story without their permission. The novel that still wants to spring forth from those characters, well …
I continued to write, even having a story under consideration for longer than average at The New Yorker. It eventually got bounced. Frankly it was close to what I aimed for, but I wimped out on the ending. Once I put it together the way I really intended, it may make an appearance here. Or as the central story in a collection. Still debating.
I also sent a few stories to the local alternative weekly for their annual competitions. I even told my boss at one job I was taking the afternoon off to meet the deadline for one competition. I forget if I met the deadline, but I made the effort.
Why go full-time now?
I realize my writing career looks long on desire and short on standard results. Looking more closely, you see I didn’t abandon my goals at all, just channeled efforts in unexpected directions.
The last few years, I kept active writing on social media gauging audience reaction to locate my niche.
An interesting combination of recreation and writing emerged about 6 years ago. One of my hobbies involves playing card-and-dice sports games. As I became comfortable with the idea, I began posting “game results” on my favorite company’s Delphi forum. Sometimes, I cross-posted on their Facebook page as well.
Beyond sports game posts, I held off going full-on into writing. It took 8 years from the time I was determined disabled to reach this point. The bulk of the issue was not getting clear answers from Social Security regarding what I am or am not allowed to do and to what extent until a few months ago.
Now, 2020 decided, “Why fight you any more? You don’t know when to give up. You have what you’ve wanted the last 50 years. Let’s see what you do with it.”
The final catalyst was the COVID test earlier this week, which came back positive.
My view? Until Christmas, I will be in lockdown. I have no desire working with the public, risking my health (comorbidities) before science gets the virus under control. Taking a job in a cramped office surrounded by coworkers is not an improvement. Receiving disability from Social Security clarifies the notion that even part-time work is becoming problematic, and full-time traditional work is impossible. By time science does control COVID, there is a fair chance I will no longer need the stresses of a typical 9-to-5 job.
50 years ago, publishing meant writers were at the mercy of agents and publishers. Today, as author Kristine Kathryn Rusch says, traditional publishing is already dead. It just doesn’t realize it yet.
Now I find myself in a world that matches with how much control I want to have over my product. I have the means to exert that control. 2020, COVID, and other factors leave me with only one way forward.
So, I write.
