What inspires you to write?
My fourteen year old son's body was breaking down from cystic fibrosis. When the lungs start failing, instead of regular oxygen, they produce gases that filter into the brain and cause horrible headaches that even the strongest pain medicine can't relieve. My mom gave him an audio version of Fablehaven and he loved it and asked me to get him the rest of the books in the series.
I watched him hold his forehead with one hand and turn pages with his other hand as he devoured these books, some times even chortling out in laughter at one of the character's silly antics. I've witnessed firsthand how a story can make a dying child forget about his pain and what's happening to him for just a little while.
That's what inspires me.
I don't expect that my silly little time travel fantasies will have the same impact to anyone as those books had on my son and our family, or that my words will be considered any kind of great literacy genius of our time, but anytime anyone gets to step outside of their daily routine for a moment and enjoy the company of my characters along with me, I think that's awesome and incredible and humbling.
No one on this planet can ever tell me there isn't a power in books and reading.
When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
At a very young age, probably around twelve. I remember swinging on my grandparents large swingset, pumping my legs hard to get as high as I could while daydreaming stories. I pretty much spent my life in daydreams. So I was swinging when I had the very coherent thought: I'm going to be a writer. That must be the coolest job in the world.
And you know what? It is the coolest job in the world. I'm thankful everyday that I get to do this.
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