From Imagination to Paper in only 11 years

In 2010, I lived in Vacaville, CA (cowtown in Spanish), just outside of downtown in a little duplex on west street. There was a small park with fitness obstacles a mile away, and a few blocks the other direction was my gym. I frequently went for long runs from my home to Pena Adobe park and back, which is about a 7-mile round trip. My backyard was small, maybe 20 by 20, with a tall privacy fence. I loved my backyard. I often found myself back there praying during warm summer nights. I didn’t have to ask why Jesus often retreated to a secluded place of prayer. There is something special about the still of night under the stars communing with our Heavenly Father.

Okay, enough with the nostalgia; I’ll move along. One day during prayer, I heard the words A Picture of the Heart, and a scene flashed into my mind. I got really excited, sat down, and typed out 26 poorly written pages. That’s when it hit me that I didn’t know how to write.

Fast forward to 2013. Lisa and I were recently married and received military orders to move (PCS) to Bury St. Edmunds, England. After being there for about five months, we attended Non-Commissioned Officers Academy (NCOA) in Germany. At NCOA, I learned a valuable lesson about my best approach to learning. For those familiar with the 4-lenses, I’m a strong gold. For those not familiar, it basically means I do best when I’m able to make a list and organize my thoughts.

Later, the same year I went on a TDY or Temporary Duty to Moron, Spain. I went to the library, laptop in hand, intent on trying the writing thing again. I remember sitting at a high table in a corner which looked out the window. I opened my laptop and still had no idea how to write. Although, I hadn’t written anything, I had frequently thought about the story and had much of it already in my mind. I remember sitting there frustrated because I couldn’t get the story from my mind onto the paper. So, I prayed and immediately heard these words, “Make an outline.” Peace flooded my mind and soul at that moment. You’ll recall that earlier in the year I discovered my best learning style is to organize my thoughts. I typed chapter 1 and wrote out a quick synopsis. Then I typed out bullet points which gave me an idea of the order of events. Before long, I had 26 chapters outlined.

Although I made great strides in 2013 toward getting thoughts on paper, I still wasn’t a good writer. I had a great outline, but I still didn’t know how to write a story. It wasn’t until 2017 after we separated from the military and returned to Alabama, that I began learning how to write, and that’s where I’ll pick up next week.