How my writing began (after the cat stories):
I think my passion for dreaming up stories began when I discovered the TV show, Emergency! in about 1974. I had already developed a love for emergency medicine two years earlier, and got special permission to take a first aid class at age 8. You were supposed to be 12 or older, and a Boy Scout, but my best friend’s dad taught the class. Although I somehow missed the first two seasons of Emergency! (probably due to bed time), I was hooked after the first show I saw. I even toyed with the idea of becoming a firefighter or a paramedic when I grew up. It didn't hurt that Johnny Gage was my first real crush (after Fess Parker as Daniel Boone, that is….). More than anything, though, I admired how they looked out for one another, and took care of people in need. What a great show!
The TV show ran weekly, and had one drawback. Well, two, if you count reruns. It only aired once a week! And this was before the days of videotaping and DVR, so if you missed an episode, you missed it until rerun time. Something had to tide me over until the next week, and that is how I began to dream up stories at night. At that time, it never occurred to me to write them down.
It wasn’t until 1999 that I discovered some people actually did write such stories down, and that when they did, it was called “Fan Fiction.” I was pleasantly stunned. Much of it is not very great, some of it is dreadful, and some of it is fantastic (sorry for the pun). After reading several stories, I decided to write one of my own. I found a nurse, a firefighter, and an English Teacher/Writer online in the “Emergency! Fan” community, and they proofread my story, and one of them posted it on a fan site. The reaction was amazing! I started getting my own fan mail! Woo hoo!
My first story was called In the Arms of a Stranger, and it was inspired by the Sarah McLaughlin song, “In the Arms of an Angel.” I wanted a story with an unlikely hero: a child saving the life of a grown man. I was attending a conference in the Sea Tac area at the time, and I had lots of driving time, and the story just kind of evolved -- first from images and emotions, then words.
I discovered that as I wrote, I began to see and hear things in new ways. The world took on new life and new textures. I was one again hooked—this time on writing.
My first story was called In the Arms of a Stranger, and it was inspired by the Sarah McLaughlin song, “In the Arms of an Angel.” I wanted a story with an unlikely hero: a child saving the life of a grown man. I was attending a conference in the Sea Tac area at the time, and I had lots of driving time, and the story just kind of evolved -- first from images and emotions, then words.
I discovered that as I wrote, I began to see and hear things in new ways. The world took on new life and new textures. I was one again hooked—this time on writing.
My second story, Light and Shadows, was much darker. I found myself researching a lot for this story. I needed to learn about drugs and poisons and how to make someone appear to have a heart attack. This story was very well received as well, and was dubbed my first “Psychological Thriller.” I liked it….
Around this time, the tragedies of September 11 struck. All those innocent lives and heroes killed in a moment of devastation. Like most Americans, it affected me deeply. I remember wearing an American flag pin every day for the first year. I hung a yellow ribbon in a shade tree in the front yard, and to this day I maintain it. It’s important to remember. I began to feel a need to do something meaningful to help our country, so I signed up with the fire department and began my training as an EMT. I got to learn and work alongside the real Johnnys and Roys, and help people in need.
They say you should write what you know, but I did it the other way around. I decided to know what I had written. That worked too. There's always more to write, and there's always more to know.
Click on the picture to the left if you'd like to visit a long-standing fan site. This picture, and the one below, were taken by the website owner of Audrey's E! Fan Fiction. Thank you for sharing!
For a short blurb regarding Writer's Digest's Oct. 2012 article on fan fiction, check out this article by clicking on it: Writer's Digest Mentions FanFic. Accurately.
For a short blurb regarding Writer's Digest's Oct. 2012 article on fan fiction, check out this article by clicking on it: Writer's Digest Mentions FanFic. Accurately.