What brought you into writing, and what keeps you there?
Great question—who can I blame for all this?
I'm kidding, of course. I'm incredibly grateful to be a working writer, and can only imagine what I'd have ended up doing otherwise. (I remembering hearing Harlan Coben say if he hadn't become a novelist, he would have been a duvet cover, and that's always stuck with me.) In true "butterfly effect" fashion, I could point to any number of things that nudged me in this direction.
But, in light of some recent news about teacher strikes in California (y'all, can we just pay these folks what they deserve?) I'd like to take this opportunity to highlight three extraordinary educators. Within the course of what probably felt like an ordinary day's work, each of them had a profound impact on my life and future career.
This is not an exhaustive list, but as many teachers have urged me to do over the years, I will try to keep it brief.
Ms. Heard - Fourth Grade
Any teacher who inspires a nine-year-old boy to linger after the bell rings deserves some kind of medal. And Ms. Heard deserves that and more. It's not exactly rare to find a teacher who cares as deeply as she did, but it's a gift nonetheless. I always saw Ms. Heard as a very serious person, someone who possessed more knowledge than my little child-sized brain could possibly hold. Of course, I was just precocious enough to take this as a challenge. I am sure, looking back, that the last thing Ms. Heard wanted to do after a long day of wrangling fourth graders was to make chit chat with the young nerd who wouldn't leave the classroom. But she always treated me like I was interesting, like I had something to say. Her attention made me see myself differently. It made me believe in myself. Ms. Heard encouraged me to be creative and thoughtful at a time when I would have traded any burgeoning storytelling talent for the ability to blend in with the other boys. But I had a teacher—a smart, savvy, occasionally intimidating teacher—who made me believe that a weirdo like me was worthy of attention.
Ms. Schlaman - AP Literature
If childhood is a tricky time to navigate, teenage years can be downright deadly. By the time my young, overachieving self landed in Ms. Schlaman's classroom my senior year of high school, I'd turned into a full-fledged drama kid with dreams of singing on a Broadway stage. But something sparked for me as I met Ms. Schlaman, dissecting great works of literature and exploring a part of my brain I didn't even know existed. She embodied the joy that comes from rigor, treating my writing with a seriousness I didn't believe it deserved. When I took the stage in the school musical (not to brag, but I was the lead) she was there to support. Little did she know, she was quietly guiding me to something better. When the opportunity came to enter an essay contest for a sizable scholarship, she helped me through more rounds of rewrites than I bet she bargained for. On the eve of the deadline, I asked if she thought my essay was good enough to impress the judges. Her response: "You're impressive." Those two words—spoken to an insecure, closeted, self-loathing teen—did more for me than any scholarship ever could.
Eric Samuelsen - Playwriting 100
It took one year of college to realize that my plan to major in musical theatre performance was woefully misguided. My sophomore year found me in Eric Samuelsen's Intro to Playwriting class, a course I registered for on a whim. In the first session, he asked us to come back in two days with a short play. I stayed up all night to write a dark comedy about carpool moms, and I grimaced through every second of hearing my words out loud in class. Eric asked me to visit during office hours, and I prepared myself for a brutal reality check. What I got, though, was a warm smile, a friendly chuckle about my audacious script, and a simple bit of encouragement: "You could do this, you know." Unbeknownst yo him I'd had a blast churning out those first few pages, and I was looking for permission to call myself a writer. Eric gave me that and so much more. Playwriting evolved into other forms, eventually leading to my debut novel. None of which would have happened without him.
So, what keeps me writing? At least part of my answer would be a deep desire to make these people proud. (Along with the many other fabulous educators I didn't have room to mention.) At my first book release event back in Sacramento, I was honored to have so many former teachers in attendance. These are the people who steered my life, and I'm sure I'm one of many who feel that way.
So, here's to the teachers. May we finally pay them what they're worth.
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