Complex Numbers

On Writing

How did you start writing? Did someone urge you to write, or did it come naturally?

I started reading at an early age.

Before public school, even before kindergarten (which, at the time, was not part of the public school system), my parents taught me to read.

I don't remember much of those early lessons. I think they involved deciphering cuneiform scratchings on stone as we ran from the saber-toothed tigers that were chasing us away from the woolly mammoth kill. Or maybe I'm misremembering.

Consequently, I always read above my grade level. This would cause me problems later in life, as I read things like Stranger in a Strange Land when I was still quite young, and it warped me.

But that and other writings - mostly, but not all, science fiction - led me to believe, in the way young people believe without evidence or accountability, that I could do that too.

So, I tried. As with most people, I think those early efforts would embarrass me now, but I do remember my parents and teachers encouraging me.

Because I was good at nerdy stuff, I sucked at sports, so I wrote.

Because I was never skilled at any sort of graphic arts, I wrote.

Because we weren't wealthy, I was happy to be able to create something with no raw materials besides a notebook and a pencil.

I learned words. I lived and breathed words. When I wasn't writing, I did crossword puzzles to improve my vocabulary. I paid attention in English classes and learned (with varying degrees of success) the rules of spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Thing is, I was also pretty good at math, and to be honest, math pays better, so I went into a field that was more math than writing. There was some need for technical communication in engineering, though, so I learned that as well, and creative writing faded into the background.

But it never completely disappeared, as you can probably tell. With my background in science fiction combined with my engineering training, I could still craft a story when I put my mind to it.

I'm still learning, though. Sometimes it's hard to know when to be less technical and more poetic. And my sense of humor usually creeps in, sometimes inappropriately. And I'm a long way from mastering the intricacies of plot and characterization, but I'm still working on improving.

I write because there's almost nothing else I'm any good at.