Teaching an old new tricks.

I am an old dog, but I always remember the immortal words of Indiana Jones.
"It's not the age, it's the mileage."

At 43 I turned a new page in my life.  I began writing, seriously.  I finished my first novel, "Whisper" and my second novel "No Rules of Engagement".  Whisper for good or bad is done, and self published.  It was my first, to prove to myself I could really do it.   Many of the feelings, experiences, steps, discoveries, and lessons learned I have posted about here.

Since publishing Whisper, I have taken up writing a blog, trying to self promote Whisper, making connections with other writers and exploring aspects I know I will have problems with later.  I have continued making the changes my editor sent back to me on a printed rough draft of "No Rules of Engagement".  I have realized with Whisper and with the work I have been doing on NROE, that my current editor is helping me learn to correct basic English punctuation problems, and spelling errors, but much more is needed.

I don't even remember how it started but I have made a contact, a friend, a discovery that to me is as big as finding a 15 foot diameter chunk of gold in my back yard.  I am happier about tonight and what has transpired than if I would have just won the freaking lottery.

Let me back up and explain a couple of things.  I came from a little town in the Panhandle of Idaho, that consisted of one post office, an elementary school, three bars, a truck stop, a tiny general store, and a few people.  Athol, Idaho at that time in history could be passed on Hwy 95 if you blinked.  I moved there the year I entered 1st grade.  I don't remember 1st Grade, I remember I was in love with my second Grade Teacher, I passed third grade with 7 F's.  The teacher had one more year before she retired and refused to flunk me and have me in her class one more year.  She said I was smart enough and passed me.  Fourth grade the teacher got pregnant and the year was finished out with a substitute.  Fifth Grade - No Spelling, History but heavy in math.  Sixth grade, Heavy in Math, but we did have vocabulary and I sucked at it.

It became obvious a few years later I had developed a extreme interest in Math and Science and easily excelled in these areas.  Twice as a child I went deaf and my hearing wasn't restored until I got tubes put in my ears, but these times in my life I became very inward oriented, read a lot, and my imagination and creativity soared off the charts as a result.  This is explains in a sense how a person can become extremely creative with a passion to write and have little to no English skills.  ME!

I have met an angel of literary mercy how is helping me for free with English, Polishing, and feedback on my writing.  In a way that I understand.  I discovered I am not stupid, just ignorant of English mechanics.  She manages to get me to write, rather rewrite and ask questions which probably come naturally to those who had a decent education and managed to learn English skills as they grew up.  She has managed to show me in a single chapter how to improve what I write, by how I write it.  The true magic and benefit of this is if I learn how to do this on my own, my work in the future will still need to be checked, for accuracy, punctuation, spelling, but hopefully the mechanics and rough spots will disappear because it will have been written correctly the first time out. 

I am generally excited to get to write, but I am shaking with anticipation to rewrite "No Rules of Engagement", and definitely rewrite the first half of my third book I have been writing.  I have gotten a lot better in the last year but I feel I am about to start making some great strides in my literary education.  That coupled with what I feel is a bit of talent and over flowing explosion of imagination, plot twists, and awesome characters, my fans (the few), will have to wait a little longer for the next and following books but they will be much better for it.  I really need this help!  I have the time.  So it will be a longer than I anticipated before that next adventure comes out.  Thank you my angel, you know who you are.  Fans hang in there.

This is one more step in the journey and the process.  So I had to add a word or two about it.  Good night It's 1:00AM in the morning and I have church tomorrow with two toddlers.  This is the fourth time this week it has been 1 or later before going to bed.  Anybody who knows what I look like, knows I need all the beauty sleep I can get. 

Posted in: English Skills Angel Writing