Springboard for Writing

I don't get called out very often, but when I do I'm ready to let my mind run wild. I have a fairly stress free job repairing machines throughout Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky and Virginia. The longest trip is to Bluefield, Virginia which is where I went yesterday. I write science fiction when I take a notion to write. I was thinking about how scientists use stars and heavenly bodies to give their space craft a gravity assist to increase speeds. I feel that way once I make my way around Charleston, West Virginia. I feel like gravity has thrown me headlong on a journey into the unknown mountain passages. Likewise my mind begins to loosen up and free flow thinking occurs while driving through the mountains. It's like Charleston is a gravity assist to plunge my thinking deep into writer's territory.

This particular assist brought my mind to childhood memories. One of the reasons was pondering the previous night's visit to the Huntington, West Virginia Writers group called "Patchwork Writers of Huntington." It was my first visit and had several different genres of writers in attendance. There were children's writers, biographers, crime writers and me the new near future SciFi writer. I was remembering the stories shared of a childhood memory. I was transported to several events in my childhood that instantly gave me that feeling I needed to be at a computer typing till the cows come home.

Several thoughts became spring boards for writing. One was the experience of the secrets of the attic. The steps to the attic were not standard, barely 4" inches wide at that. It was a steep ascent. The attic was bare but there were large windows at both ends of the building which helped light up the attic during the day. There was hard wood flooring in the attic, but it was empty except for the dust and cobwebs. There is a secret there... hence the springboard.

Another memory poured in right over top that memory. It was the first Christmas in the new house. The house wasn't new, just an old farm house, but it was new to us. (same house with the attic) At the time I was next to the youngest in the pecking order of five children. I always wanted to follow and play with my older siblings, but they didn't want anything to do with me. After Christmas, I had my new jeans, shoes and winter coat on and was ready to go out and play in the snow. I watched as my two older brothers went exploring in the woods. I decided to follow. They slid down the hill toward the creek. I did the same. They walked along the creek that had ice across it in the deep pools. I followed out of site ducking behind trees when they would stop to look back. There was a tree that had fallen across the creek and they walked across it. I came to the tree and was quite intimidated. I started to cross. It was very icy. I lost my footing, slipped off the log and broke through the ice... another spring board!

There were many adventures at this house. It belonged to a farmer and he would store his corn in the corn cribs, grain in the grain bins and hay in the big barn all within view of the little house. We would sneak out to his barn break his bails of hay and jump from the loft into the pile. I would only jump from the first story into the hay pile. My older brothers and sister went all the way to the top of the barn and jumped. I couldn't overcome my fear enough to do it. But then it was time to move and I had to bring myself to jump. When I finally did, I landed wrong catching my chin on my knee and nearly biting my lip off... another spring board.

Back to today... I have a completed novel waiting for an agent and publisher to say, "Let's do some business." I've received a couple of rejections, and wondering how many more obligatory rejections I will need to go through before finding the magical combination that gets my work noticed.

Here is a description of my work:
THE TOUCH ME NOTS is an 80,000 word Near Future Science Fiction suspense filled action novel. An accident at the GenRose Corp genetics lab exposes Dr. Nathan Rysner to genetically altered material igniting a chain of world changing events. Nathan becomes implicated in a deadly explosion of the lab and is on the run from the FBI, CDC and the Black Ops Agents responsible for the chaos. Along his journey to vindication, Nathan discovers he has new genetic capabilities. He uses these to undue the Black Ops military mission to create an invincible warrior. Nathan inadvertently initiates a world wide pandemic of healing. This threatens the medical and drug industries, yet frees everyone from all life threatening illnesses. Nathan meets his life love Sherry Turner, who helps him discover a purpose to live. The hope she gives enables Nathan to rise above the darkness and tragedy he must face. The turn of events at the end will have readers returning to the beginning to search for clues.