I’ve said it before: I’m a professional used-to-be. I’ve held many jobs, almost none of which matched my training and education. Why bring up this personal revelation? Because of something I heard in Bible study last Sunday.
My wife and I attended one of the Sunday school style Bible studies offered at the church we’ve been attending. It was our first time in that class. One of our fellow students raised this question: “Is it possible to take the wrong road to the right place?”
It doesn’t take much to slam my mind’s accelerator to the floor. That did it. There is a spiritual application to the question and those were the first thoughts that ricocheted in my skull, but my mind also ran to writing. The statement describes my path to publication.
It’s odd to think that the guy who directs two writers conferences and has taught at scores of others never went to a writers conference. (Well, I attended one workshop at the Santa Barbara conference that had to do with writing articles. Naturally I started writing books.)
On my way to becoming a full time writer (from the Latin for “vow of poverty”) I . . .
- Worked at a McDonalds doing my part to increase obesity in America (including my own),
- Served as a “campus cop” at the university I attended,
- Work for Bank of America fixing errors made in customer billing,
- Was a firefighter for a couple of years,
- Spent 10 years in architecture creating working drawings for room additions, homes, subdivisions, and commercial buildings,
- Worked at a radio station,
- Served as senior pastor in three Baptist churches (some have suggested that I kept three churches from having a pastor).
I have two earned degrees: a Bachelors and a Masters in biblical studies. My Master’s thesis was, “A Quantitative Analysis of Southern Baptist Growth Trends in San Diego.” I’ll give you a moment to wake up. (My major professor told me the work kept him up late. I suggested it was probably indigestion.) I’ve been thinking of republishing the thesis and selling it as a sleep aid.
None of this seems like good training for a writing career. Or was it? My life experience did not lead to an MFA in creative writing but it did give me a real view of the world. McDonalds taught me to show up for work whether I wanted to or not. It also taught me that I needed to be intellectually challenged to be happy.
Being a campus cop taught me endurance. I often worked the graveyard shift only to change clothes and go to upper division science classes and struggle to stay awake.
The BankAmericard division I worked for was in the center of San Francisco. It was there I learned about the diversity of culture. I also learned that banking wasn’t for me.
Firefighting meant spending a lot of time with rough-and-tumble men. I learned how such men speak, joke, and deal with a dangerous job. This experience has helped me write about courage and show the depth such men possess.
Architecture open the doors of creativity. I still love everything about the art and science of architecture. At the heart of building design is the ability to start with a blank piece of paper and create something that only your mind can see. Sound familiar?
My work at the radio station was primarily sales (which I hated) and some ad writing (which I loved). I learned how to compress a great deal of information into 30 seconds. That taught me there’s power in the economy of words.
Writing an academic thesis convinced me I could write a book-length work.
Being a pastor for 22 years gave me depth. I buried young and old alike; I saw the courage faith brings to the terminally ill; I saw the power of spiritual application to human life; I found heroes in every pew.
Is it possible to take the wrong road to the right place in the world of writing? For me, the answer is yes, and I believe the same of you. Life experience makes writers. Craft can be learned; life has to be lived. All you’ve been through and are going through is training to be a writer.
Alton Gansky
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I used to tell people I was going to be an architect when I grew up. Never went in that direction as an adult though. Lego bricks and the like were enough.
The rule of thumb I heard was age 30. You can't write until you've had a certain minimum number and variety of experiences. And you achieve them by around age 30.
Very good words. Thank you for sharing.
Posted by: Daniel Smith | 09/12/2011 at 11:25 AM