Heather Day Gilbert

Author

ORIGINS Blogfest…In Which a Poet Morphs into a Book-Writing Mom

For the Origins Blogfest, we’re supposed to chronicle our earliest remembrances of our writing superpowers…okay, maybe not superpowers, as you’ll quickly find out below.

As you can tell from my monkey bar photo above, I had a highly cerebral childhood! Seriously, though, I was ambidextrous till K-4 (they made me choose), I read a LOT, and I liked phonics. This lent itself handily to my fascination with writing.

My dad went on a business trip and brought me back a chinoiserie (always wanted to use that word), burgundy silk-looking diary. I faithfully scribed all the highlights of my eight-year-old existence into it. Many entries simply said, “Today, Mom made me take a nap again.” I also kept detailed lists of all my Christmas gifts, realizing their importance for posterity.

The first time I hit the big-time was in fifth grade, when we had to write an essay titled “A Teacher Is.” I won a $25 savings bond and got to read my winning essay on the radio. This would be the exact same essay I whipped up the very morning it was due. I’d written about how our teacher loved us because she disciplined us, perhaps harking back to sermons I’d already internalized about “Whom the Lord loves, He chastens.” Or it could’ve been the fact that I was in a rowdy class and couldn’t concentrate unless the teacher pulled rank.

Once I figured out how to type, I amused myself and my family with personally typed newsletters. But I had my epiphany moment after returning from the beach when I was probably eleven or twelve, when I wrote this poem:

As I look at the clouds,
I think of how
The ocean lapped at my feet.
I remember how
The salty water tasted on my tongue.
I remember
The bright moonbeams dancing on the waves.

But all that is gone.
I am looking at a space
Between two trees
That allows me to see
Limitless potential.

The clouds move swiftly on
To new horizons.
I look at them and know
That some other person 
Is looking at them, too.

The golden sunsets,
The red light of dawn
All assure me
That time moves on.

This very poem cinched the deal. I ran over to inform my mom and grandma that I was, in fact, a WRITER! I had been all along–who KNEW?

Fast-forward to my college years, in which I wrote goth stuff (before goth existed!), wore black, and started drinking coffee. I will spare you a lengthy poem, but here’s a little glimpse into my mind at that time:

–what is a pessimist?
   am I?
  good night I hope not. 
but optimism is a trivial jeopardy 
–a risk
taken by a blind and ignorant few…

Um….yeah. Moving right along. I won the extemporaneous essay contest my senior year in college, finishing my essay about fifteen minutes before everyone else and turning it in without a backward glance. I like to write fast.

Then I volunteered at a local newspaper, running a popular series called “Of Beds and Breakfasts.” It was rather infuriating to discover that my relatively error-free copies had accrued alarming numbers of grammatical and spelling errors when printed, thanks to the editor’s changes. ‘Nuff said on this particular small-town editor’s ability to edit.

After that, I strode into the editor’s office at a larger newspaper and convinced him of my writing qualifications. He proceeded to create a job for me covering county news. I’m nothing if not ambitious.

Around this time, I did try my hand at novel-writing. Here’s a blip of one of the MYRIAD stories I started:

That one hit.

I stand at my French doors and let the hailstones beat a rhythm into my brain. I remember the last storm–I remember Nicholas. We had been sitting on the front porch, not fearing because we had each other. He had been working on a new song–he sang it to me, loudly, as if to overpower the elements.

“Shattered rainbow
shining in moonlight
luring me inside
your colorless splendor
to the heart of the ocean…
the heart of the storm
the eye of fate.”

I had laughed. “What a melodious compilation of nonsense!” He grabbed my arms. His blue eyes were sharp, chastising. “Oriana, this is real. Not nonsense. I sing to nature, for myself, of you.”

Yes, the mysterious artist in love with the beautiful girl with an impossibly exotic name…not a new theme there. And I must say that was almost the extent of this story.

Then I got married. My romantically overblown poems and stories stopped, because I had a tangible love now. Someone who accepted me, pessimistic poems and all. I loved marriage and, it turns out, I loved having kids. So then I was a homeschooling mom who happened to write poems as an outlet. They were a bit more disjointed, but here’s one I’m still fond of:

West Virginia is 
a hard place to know
It welcomes you with sunlight
And punishes you with snow.
It holds you in its vision
And blinds you with its trees
It shows off its baby birdies,
Then kills them, if you please.
Dogs don’t stop to wonder
And I can’t stop to care
Because in leaving West Virginia,
I’ve finally moved in there.

Then the rest is chronicled on this blog. My kids got bigger and more independent. My friend challenged me to write a book in a month for NaNo–and we have established that I like to WRITE FAST. Thus, Otherworld was my first completed novel, though I’d come close a couple of times before. And now I’ve finished my first historical fiction novel, God’s Daughter. I’m getting ready to start on the sequel. And I hope I”m on the cusp of finding my second agent (had one for Otherworld).

I’d love it if you could follow my blog, or at least leave some comments of how your writing journey has paralleled mine (or perhaps diverged greatly!). And let me know I’m not the only person who loves to write poetry (though I rarely share the super-personal stuff, okay?).

Enjoy the blog-hopping!

–Heather
 

Comments

  2. Faith E. Hough says

    I write poetry! My first attempt was at age 7…my mother, sadly, kept a copy, though I'm still trying to convince her it would be better suited as kindling…I find being a homeschooling mother is very conducive to writing. I'm so aware of encouraging my kids to be creative that I feel an obligation to set a good example!Thanks for sharing your story–I loved it! 🙂

  3. K. Turley (Clutzattack) says

    I didn't this in my Origins post, but I also remember winning some sort of savings bond for writing a story in the 5th grade. That's cool there are so many businesses interested in promoting youth writing. Of course, if it'd been cash, without a maturing period, I probably would have considered writing for a career a lot sooner.

  6. TC Avey says

    What a journey! Pretty profound poem at age 12. Thanks for sharing parts of your journey.I love reading- guess I take after my mom, not that she gave me much choice. She had me in so many reading programs when I was little- you know the ones that reward readers with ice cream sundays or something like that. Anyway, I guess the first thing I remember writing was a poem when my grandpa died- I was in 4th grade. It impressed my parents enough that they had it printed on his funeral cards (what is the word I am looking for…my cold fogged brain isn't working well today).After that I continued to write poetry all throughout school. I didn't start writing a novel till a few years ago.I always dreamed of being a writer but I never pursued it in college or anything. Too bad, I might have learned a thing or two that would come in handy now.

  7. Steven says

    It's always interesting to hear how others became involved in writing. I guess you could say that you work well under tight deadlines. I tried following your blog, but something about my account is all screwy so I will have to try again in a bit.

  9. Christine Rains says

    Great story and beautiful poetry. I'm waiting for my little guy to get bigger so I have more time to write again. Yet he's inspiring me to see things in different ways.

  10. LTM says

    what beautiful poetry! How wonderful–and I think poets have an advantage because you can create such lovely images.So NaNo did it? That's very cool. And you were ambidextrous? Interesting. Thanks for sharing~ :o) <3

  11. nutschell says

    HI Heather, I'm dropping by from the origins blogfest. I enjoyed reading about your writing journey, and I loved all the poems you shared.your newest follower,Nutschellwww.thewritingnut.com

  15. DL Hammons says

    I love how you weaved in samples of your writing-self as you progressed. Odessy indeed! Thank you so much for helping to make this blogfest something memorable! 🙂

  16. Sarah says

    I love the snapshots of your writing over time! That's an awesome way to present an origin story! Good luck signing with another agent!!

  18. Tonja says

    Writing fast comes in handy when you have kids. I like writing poetry too, but I'm not convinced I'm very good at it. No one seems to get it, but that's kind of how poetry is sometimes. Good luck on finishing your novels.

  21. Mary@GigglesandGuns says

    You're much too young to know of these but my first typewriter was a green Thom Thumb. With it I was a journalist like those in the movies. even did a neighborhood weekly just for kids.

  22. Allison says

    Great story! I did NaNo this past November and it was great and got me writing… but I don't think I like to write fast. I was one of those few people who got their work done in school days before it was due, because I'm not a fan of pressure.Allison (Geek Banter)

  25. ~Sia McKye~ says

    Heather, I can relate to you poem about West Virginia. Just about the time I got used to a we'd move to the next.But I learned so much and saw so much when we traveled.Ditto on editing editors at newspapers.Glad you found your *feet* and are zipping right along. 🙂Sia McKye OVER COFFEE

  26. Heather Day Gilbert says

    @Susan G–no, I'm sure I wasn't the original goth! I was grunge era. I think I wore black due to the perceived melancholy of college…and possibly to look quasi-French (or Manhattanish)! Ha.

  27. Tyrean Martinson says

    Loved your origins story! I was ambidextrous and made to choose too! I chose leftie, because I knew it would irritate the teacher making me choose . . .sad reasoning, I know.Loved your realization of being a writer at age 12!

  28. Scarlett says

    Heather, I thoroughly enjoyed this peek into your writing journey! And yes, you seem so familiar to me too. We'll get it right this time, eh? *big grin*I haven't shared any poetry on my blog yet. Haven't really written too much of it. But when I do, it tends to pull out the more melancholy in me, I think. Or at the very least, my reflective side. Pretty big side, actually.Really love the titles of both your books! Curious to see more!So nice to *meet* you here (again) in the Fest!

  29. Julie Dao says

    WOW! You wrote some beautiful poetry as a kid! I love that your dad bought you your first journal. I can't remember who bought me mine, but I'm forever indebted to them! And I like the picture of you on the playground 🙂 Thanks for sharing, Heather! What a great story.

  32. J.L. Campbell says

    Hi, Heather, nice to meet you. You had me at poetry, which I'm useless at, but I admire those who can make so few words into something that sounds beautiful.

  34. Adrienne says

    I love how you punctuated each phase of your writing journey with examples of your writing. I would be scared to post any elementary school poems, but yours was so great!

  38. prerna pickett says

    Such a great story. As a mother I know how hard it is to find time to write, and I don't home school! Thanks for stopping by my blog, and for your kind comment.

  43. Bonnie Gwyn says

    I love how you were talking about 'newsletters.' I did that as well, with little stories that I came up with about my dolls. Haha Didn't mention that in my origin, but your post triggered memories! 🙂 Thanks for sharing!!

  44. Mark Koopmans says

    Aloha Heather,Thanks for the comments – and the follow and am doing the same :)Wow… you're a homeschooling mom of three (swap dad for mom and that's me) and you wrote a book in a month (that is *not* me :)God bless ye 🙂

  45. JeffO says

    That's terrific, Heather, thank you for sharing that with us.I love that West Virginia poem.I've noticed a lot of us had early starts and long interruptions in our writing. Part of me bemoans the fact that I didn't continue to write after my own 'auspicious' start, but maybe I just wasn't ready for it.Nice to meet you!

  47. Julie says

    I'm jealous that you can write so fast, I seem to move at a crawl and was sure I'd never finish the first draft of my novel. This was a great read, and I love the monkey bars photo! Very cute. :)Thanks for coming by my blog, I'm so glad to meet you through this fest!

  49. Bish Denham says

    I simply adore the poem you wrote when you were eleven or twelve. Very insightful for one so young! I wish I had my diaries from when I was a pre-teen and young teen, but in a fit of angst I burned them all….