The things we get to do…
One of the best things about being a writer is the research. Now, I’m not talking library research, although that can be interesting. I’m talking the gritty down-to-earth research in which we get to talk to people about their jobs, their hobbies, and their life experiences. This kind of research is the spark that makes a book come alive, with details and anecdotes I would have no idea to include if I hadn’t talked to the expert.
Many people have (voluntarily) had their lives and stories used in my books. For Stella it was the farmers, the bikers, the cops, and the Mennonites. For Lost Sons it was naval officers, and Mennonite Central Committee workers, and cops. Now, for Embrace the Grim Reaper, the first in a new series beginning next year, it is something completely different, and oh, so cool.
Martial arts.
You know how sometimes things just seem to happen because, well, they seem meant to? Well, perhaps some of you remember my friend Jenny whom I’ve written about before. She’s the one with the pool and the one who knows how to get the best deals around when it comes to couponing. (In fact, if you live in NW Ohio, you should check out her NW Ohio coupon web site to save money!) Hold your breath, because she is about to get even cooler — she is a black belt in hapkido.
Now, I didn’t know this when I first got to know her. All I knew was that she was the mom of one of my daughter’s best friends. But I began talking with her about writing (she also is a writer — can this woman get any more awesome?), and told her the protagonist in my new book needed to know martial arts. You could’ve knocked me over with a pencil (or a roundhouse punch) when she told me what she can do.
Last week she took me up to observe her hapkido class and meet her instructor, fifth-degree black belt hapkido master, Doug Custer. Can we say awesome? Not only did I get to watch the class, but Mr. Custer told one of his black belts to take the class while he sat in a corner with me and told me all the juicy details. After a while he sent them off into pairs and pulled one of the students over to my corner, where he proceeded to jab and throw this poor guy in answer to my questions. (Thank you, sir, may I have another?)
Once he was done with him, he offered to teach me a move I’d admired. So here’s me, complete novice, learning to throw this man whose been in this art for years. I had him down on the ground (with his instruction and prodding, of course) and he told me I could’ve easily broken his arm, had I continued in the direction I was going.
Wow.
The next day Jenny helped me choreograph a fight scene for my book. There we were in her living room, figuring out just how my character was going to defend herself and deal with some pretty nasty people. Can we say exact opposite of Judy the pacifist?
Mr. Custer has taken a look at what I’ve done, and has offered to help any time I need help with a book. I have a feeling I’ll be calling on him often!
So you know how people are always saying write what you know? Well, there’s something to be said for that, but for the most part I write about what I want to know.
It’s much, much more fun.
