All I Really Wanted to Do was Write a Book

This may be a brief entry.  I'm not sure.  A few years ago, I got together with a former teacher from Walkerville Secondary and a former student Prime Minister.  This was after I retired, but before I'd really gotten the idea of writing The Principal Chronicles.  The former teacher was working towards his Masters Degree, the former student was working for the city and finishing up her first degree.  I, pretty much newly retired, wasn't doing much of anything.

"So Dave, apart from travelling, and working around the house, what are you doing with your time?"

As I just mentioned, the truth was that I wasn't doing much of anything.

"Well, I'm doing a bit of writing..."

"Cool!  What kind?  What are you writing?"

"Short stories mostly...  You know, things that happened when I was teaching."

"Oh!  Anything published?"

"No.  But maybe I could collect them into something..."

I think you can see where this is going.  We got together again, a couple years later and a few months before covid. and I was asked again about the progress of my writing.   It was a little embarrassing.  And it lit a bit of a fire under me.  And so I began to write and covid provided the rest of the impetus for me to write and write and edit and write and organize.

But all I really wanted to do through all this was write a book.

I had no idea the number of things I was going to have to learn - about publishing, and editing, and placing pictures within text, and ISBNs and copyright and paper quality and - well - a whole lot of things I never even considered about writing a book.

And then the marketing and selling of the thing!  E-transfers and Square!  I joke on Facebook and Twitter about The Garlick Book Store, but it's not really a joke!  The neighbours must think I've become a drug dealer in my retirement!  Cars pull up to the front of the house, someone gets out, spends two or three minutes with me at the front door, an exchange is often made and they leave with a small package.  Twenty, thirty times a day.  Cars no one's seen before, and probably won't see again.

I'm not complaining, by the way.  This has been fun.  I've enjoyed the learning, and I've enjoyed the feedback I'm getting about my book.  And those people who've come to the front door?  Most have been former students, teachers and friends from High School and even Grade School.  I've been having my own mini reunions for the last three weeks, and it gets to continue for at least the next few weeks and maybe months.  And I'm also going to get to talk to groups of people again!  And there have been podcasts and maybe even recording myself reading the stories and having them fashioned into an audiobook!

So although all I really wanted to do was write a book, I've given myself a few new jobs.  And what I said for years about being a life long learner has proven to be the truth.