My Pet Addiction

I work as a schoolbus driver to support my writing habit, an almost-addiction that's been growing within me for more than a decade.

Some history: I switched schools a lot as a kid, so I've worked on four different school newspapers and two yearbooks. I even wrote for the 1988 Surfside camp newspaper (some spoof about Bruce or something like that). I submitted to tons of poetry contests, starting in junior high, and won what seemed like huge cash prizes at the time ($50 goes a long way when you don't have to pay rent).

But I wasn't writing to express myself. I planned on being a lawyer or business owner or president or something like that. I viewed writing as a means of practicing, of becoming a Communicator. I'd noticed that people, who could speak and write clearly, were more likely to be listened to with respect, hired for high-powered jobs, and given tons of money.

Somewhere along the way, I fell in love with the process, and my goals changed.

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