Development Of Book
About Stephen
Development Of Book
Flash forward to 2012, and I was still alive. But the Frenso pollution was dangerous to Pat’s lung condition. The doctors at Stanford insisted she move to the coast. We did, but I left behind my large shop of equipment for working rocks, stained glass, and a studio room for painting.
During my morning workout on the treadmill I became focused on my fascinating family history. I was entertained by what they did, but more intrigued by how and why they did it. I began to wonder are we mostly a result or our nature, our genes? Or are we mostly a product of our nurturing, culture, parents’ attitude, lifetime experiences, or even our friends who influence us?
Over two days I discussed it with Pat. In addition to her lung disease Pat had many auto immune disorders that would often weaken her to a point that I had become her full-time caretaker. After she awoke from resting and saw the faraway look in my eyes as I turned pages through a magazine. Pat said, “You’re really bored!” I agreed. “Since you can’t do any of your usual hobbies, you should develop a new one. Why don’t you write a novel? You’ve never done that.”
“I don’t have a plot.”
” Yes you do.
Pat said, “Your family history stretches for about two hundred years and involves horrible trauma, love stories, mystery, amazing decisions, and creativity leading both to successes and failures. Why don’t you write a novel about that? Maybe you’ll get some clues to those questions about why and how it all happened. Also, you’re always fascinated, not just by your family, but by the people who knowingly or unknowingly altered the course of your life. You always call them your angels. Just imagine where you would be today without those unexpected encounters. You’ve got lots to write about.”
I hope you are entertained by this fascinating odyssey that began roughly two hundred years before we climbed that glacier. Pat was right it is all those things, a mystery story, a love story, a tragedy, a success story, and for any reader an opportunity to self-reflect, if you choose to take it.
My storyteller, Elijah, tells this story to a group of campers at Quartzsite. Our fellow campers’ discussions are representations-of real opinions and self-reflections of the group interactions we had at Quartzsite University, but are not exact details of the real conversations. No tape recorder was used. The historical events are hopefully accurate, but names have been changed. The first book subtitled “My enigmatic Beginning” is about the travel of the nomadic genes from Eastern Europe to create a successful life in America. The second book, subtitled “Explosion” is a coming of age novel, a quirky and tumultuous life story. The third book, soon to come, is about the trials and tribulations of the nomadic genes as they battle society in order for their carrier to become a man.
Enjoy.
