Ask the Author: Jeff Wade
Answered Questions (7)
Jeff Wade
Hey there, other Jeff Wade. I complained about this long ago and never received an answer. You can reach me at jeff@jeffwade.com. Or call me at 786-290-4603. Maybe between us, we can figure out who we need to speak with to fix this.
Jeff Wade
Discipline. You just have to "write through it." I delete a lot of garbage, but I put something "on paper" (on a Word document as it were) EVERY SINGLE DAY! Eventually, something shakes out, a new direction or idea emerges... and I become a man possessed. It's as if, limited to a keyboard, I can't keep up with the story unfolding in my head.
God knows it's fun, but it's also work.
Just write.
God knows it's fun, but it's also work.
Just write.
Jeff Wade
For me, the best thing about being a writer is the same as that of being a reader:
Escape.
I find that "listening" to my characters tell their stories is just as therapeutic and entertaining as reading someone else's characters.
At this point, I write as a hobby. I almost dread the day (if it ever comes) when I do it for a living. I ruined my love for music by becoming a professional. Although I've managed with martial arts, I struggle to maintain my passion for it because I currently do it to feed my family. The glittering prizes and endless compromises (hat tip to Neal Peart) of professionalism take their toll. So far, I've managed with martial arts. We'll see what happens with writing...
Escape.
I find that "listening" to my characters tell their stories is just as therapeutic and entertaining as reading someone else's characters.
At this point, I write as a hobby. I almost dread the day (if it ever comes) when I do it for a living. I ruined my love for music by becoming a professional. Although I've managed with martial arts, I struggle to maintain my passion for it because I currently do it to feed my family. The glittering prizes and endless compromises (hat tip to Neal Peart) of professionalism take their toll. So far, I've managed with martial arts. We'll see what happens with writing...
Jeff Wade
My advice to aspiring writers is this:
God knows it's fun, but it's also WORK! When you inevitably hit a wall, KEEP WRITING! Discipline yourself. Just sit down and write. Yes, you may delete it all, but you'll release ideas. Oftentimes, you'll find the characters take on lives of their own and lead the story places you never imagined it going. LET THEM! It will be as if the story is writing itself, through your mind and fingers.
But only if you write.
Planning it, thinking about it, talking about it, dreaming about it, taking classes about it, reading about it... all great, but they will not get it WRITTEN.
Just write.
God knows it's fun, but it's also WORK! When you inevitably hit a wall, KEEP WRITING! Discipline yourself. Just sit down and write. Yes, you may delete it all, but you'll release ideas. Oftentimes, you'll find the characters take on lives of their own and lead the story places you never imagined it going. LET THEM! It will be as if the story is writing itself, through your mind and fingers.
But only if you write.
Planning it, thinking about it, talking about it, dreaming about it, taking classes about it, reading about it... all great, but they will not get it WRITTEN.
Just write.
Jeff Wade
I am currently working on several stories, one of which is entitled "Drawer #7." Here are the first few lines:
The room was dim and smoky, the mirror filthy with nicotine residue and dust, but this much was clear:
That was not her face!
Not her eyes, but then . . . what did her eyes look like anyway? She inched forward cautiously for a closer look.
Another one is called "Tunnel of Love." No, it's not a romance novel. It's about two adult brothers who make the mistake of going spelunking without telling anyone. That's a big no-no in cave exploration! But alas, they are completely inexperienced in the field.
It was an innocent mistake. During a walk in the woods, they discover a Volkswagen sized indention on the side of a rocky hill, in the back of which is the opening to a natural tunnel. Curious, they crawl in, feet first, one after the other to investigate. The situation disintegrates when they find themselves stuck. Now what?
Finally, I'm working on a children's story about a little homeless girl who lives under an old oak tree on the outskirts of the town fairgrounds. A martial arts expert, she saves a little boy from a gang of bullies—then disappears. How would a girl of no more than ten be able to fight like that? Who is she? Where does she live? Why did she help him, only to vanish after the scuffle? The next night, the boy returns to the fair grounds to get some answers...
The room was dim and smoky, the mirror filthy with nicotine residue and dust, but this much was clear:
That was not her face!
Not her eyes, but then . . . what did her eyes look like anyway? She inched forward cautiously for a closer look.
Another one is called "Tunnel of Love." No, it's not a romance novel. It's about two adult brothers who make the mistake of going spelunking without telling anyone. That's a big no-no in cave exploration! But alas, they are completely inexperienced in the field.
It was an innocent mistake. During a walk in the woods, they discover a Volkswagen sized indention on the side of a rocky hill, in the back of which is the opening to a natural tunnel. Curious, they crawl in, feet first, one after the other to investigate. The situation disintegrates when they find themselves stuck. Now what?
Finally, I'm working on a children's story about a little homeless girl who lives under an old oak tree on the outskirts of the town fairgrounds. A martial arts expert, she saves a little boy from a gang of bullies—then disappears. How would a girl of no more than ten be able to fight like that? Who is she? Where does she live? Why did she help him, only to vanish after the scuffle? The next night, the boy returns to the fair grounds to get some answers...
Jeff Wade
I suffer from a disease called "OAI." That is, "Over Active Imagination." One of my favorite pastimes is spinning yarns for my kids at bedtime. In my martial arts school emails, I make up characters and scenarios to illustrate points about regular attendance, home practice, discipline, benevolence and other dojo virtues. When a student tells me an anecdote about a school bully, I think "There's a story!" When I read news copy about a home invasion, I think "That would make a great novel!" When I hear my kids playing, immersed in the little make believe worlds of their minds, I think "What a great kids' book idea!" For better or worse, my dream world every night is vivid and exciting...and sometimes terrifying. When I wake up in the middle of an unresolved conflict, I can never sleep again until I come up with a solution.
So I use all that. I love "serving," or helping others. This passion has manifested itself over the last three decades in the form of teaching martial arts. Lately, it's morphed into a desire to entertain people—by offering them a chance to engage their own imaginations and thus escape through laughter, tears, wonder and adrenaline.
I have more story ideas written down than I'll ever be able to pursue in black and white. They populate my computer and cell phone notes. They can also be found on restaurant napkins littering my van, scraps of paper in my office—and lots of times on the back of my hand! The voices in my head just refuse to stop.
THANK YOU, VOICES!
So I use all that. I love "serving," or helping others. This passion has manifested itself over the last three decades in the form of teaching martial arts. Lately, it's morphed into a desire to entertain people—by offering them a chance to engage their own imaginations and thus escape through laughter, tears, wonder and adrenaline.
I have more story ideas written down than I'll ever be able to pursue in black and white. They populate my computer and cell phone notes. They can also be found on restaurant napkins littering my van, scraps of paper in my office—and lots of times on the back of my hand! The voices in my head just refuse to stop.
THANK YOU, VOICES!
Jeff Wade
I teach martial arts and self defense for a living. I do not believe in fighting, which I define as a physical confrontation used to settle a non-life-threatening dispute. Self Defense, on the other hand, I define as avoiding or escaping a threat to life or health. I do tons of research on violent crime and violent criminal psychology in order to better understand the latter. In so doing, I feel I'm a more effective instructor of self defense.
As part of this research, I read "Strong on Defense" by Sanford Strong. The book is a collection of police reports involving violent crime. One of the reports was about a little girl who was abducted in a grocery store parking lot and had to struggle for her life. Having daughters myself, the story moved me. I also had great respect for the kid's efforts! I used to tell her story in my classes, because the strategies and attitudes involved so poignantly illustrated the concepts I was trying to teach.
Then one day it dawned on me that the tale would make an excellent novel. I took a few liberties with the details, spent seven years tinkering with it and then one day... VOILA! Survivors.
As part of this research, I read "Strong on Defense" by Sanford Strong. The book is a collection of police reports involving violent crime. One of the reports was about a little girl who was abducted in a grocery store parking lot and had to struggle for her life. Having daughters myself, the story moved me. I also had great respect for the kid's efforts! I used to tell her story in my classes, because the strategies and attitudes involved so poignantly illustrated the concepts I was trying to teach.
Then one day it dawned on me that the tale would make an excellent novel. I took a few liberties with the details, spent seven years tinkering with it and then one day... VOILA! Survivors.
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Nov 09, 2023 06:29AM · flag