Welcome to the Author’s Corner

Author’s Corner Introduction

By R.L. Herron

Ask anyone who is retired if they’d like to go back to their youth, and some would jump at the chance. However, I think most would emphatically decline … and a few might actually shudder.

Why?

Despite our glorification of it, youth is often a time full of worries: school; career; relationships; money; kids. A period with no idea of who we are, or what we really want in life. Most of the time we’re winging it, doing our best to cope.

Author R.L. Herron

Author R.L. Herron

I’ve lived in Lake Orion for forty-two years. I’ve been thinking about it lately because, Heaven willing, I’ll soon reach an age I used to think of as old. I’ve lived through the Korean War, the hydrogen bomb, the USSR launch of Sputnik; and the assassinations of President John Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Martin Luther King.

I was as excited as every other American when we landed on the moon. I worried about the draft during the Vietnam War and watched the news coverage of the Berlin wall coming down.

I saw the beginning of the Internet, and participated in developing web sites for it. I witnessed the horror of 9/11; worried about our troops during the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. I suffered, along with my friends, in the 2007 Recession.

When I stop and think about it, I realize I’ve witnessed an awful lot. Yet, I sometimes still feel like a kid because, for me, age is not a disability.

Every day is another chance. Time, after all, comes in one large bundle that includes the good, the bad and the disappointing. We have to accept the whole bundle, even the tragedies, sad as they are.

Age can be an enormous help to an author.

I can hear you asking again … why?

For one thing, personal likes and dislikes are crisper. We can recall our first experience with the green of spring, special holidays, unique friends and (unfortunately) all our mistakes. We understand more deeply the people we love.

If you think you’d like to be a writer, how can you fail to find something to write about in that?

I’ve written stories my whole life, but I didn’t begin to do it full-time until I retired. At the time, I thought I might be too old. However, I’ve discovered the creative energy of the mind doesn’t care how old you are.

I write every day now because I understand, perhaps for the first time, the cliché that each moment that passes is gone forever … never to return … but, as authors, we can be as young or as old as the characters we make up.

If you’re interested, I can shed some light on self-publishing. I’ve published seven books in the last six years, winning several awards, and I have a lot more stories rattling around in my head.

So, what exactly does that mean?

I still have writing to do.

Care to join me?

About R.L. Herron

R.L. Herron, the author of multiple works of fiction, including several Readers' Favorite medal winners, lives and writes in Michigan with his lovely wife, and a finally-paid mortgage. His books are all available on Amazon and online with Barnes & Noble. Visit Author R.L. Herron's Website, Broken Glass.

Comments

  1. David London says

    Well written. Thanks for the inspiration. I often feel I should have started writing earlier in life, but I’m motivated now and there’s no reason not to. Thanks!

  2. Thanks, David. Go for it…and good luck!

  3. Bud Haynes says

    Interesting new column. I like what R.L.Herron has to say. I plan to read more so I can do a better job of writing. I look forward to follow up columns. Keep up the good work.

  4. Herron knows what he is talking about, and is therefore worth listening to. I may be slightly biased because I’m seeing life from the same ‘older’ perspective, but it’s a tried and tested bias born out by experience.

    If the rest of his articles are as clear and crisp as this one there’s much to learned by anyone who is willing.

    Will they make you a best-seller? That part is up to you, but Herron will provide the stepping stones across the torrent of misinformation which surrounds would-be writers.

    Gyppo (UK)

  5. Nice piece, Ron. Thanks for sharing!

  6. Judy Hackstock says

    I am looking retirement in the face this year, which makes me very nervous. It all went so fast! I always tinkered with writing as a teenager. I like the perspective of the article, which makes me reconsider my former interests, writing and photography.

  7. Kristen Soard says

    Definitely something to ponder! As life seems to move faster with every birthday, I can’t imagine returning to an age where I’d have to start over. It’s exhausting just to think about. I do think as I age I have more stories to tell, lessons to pass on, and dreams that I still hope to achieve. As age ripens our minds & bodies, we also have the responsibility to share our experiences with those who can benefit. Whether a family member, or public audience, don’t count us out yet. We’ve been there, done that & are still going strong! Great article Ron. I look forward to learning more from your expertise.

  8. Susan Harriman Smelser says

    I agree with you Ron. Age is not a disability. I went back to college to finish my degree at 49. I went on to get a masters and did post graduate work until I was 58. I love telling others they are never too old to go after their dreams. I appreciate your knowledge and experience as I attempt to put 20 years of writing together. Though I’m moving slow, I feel that age is only an asset as I write. Thanks for your help and your wisdom.

  9. Anthony Ambrogio says

    Very nicely (and very well) put — it shows the same awareness and self-deprecation that I’ve found in your blog posts (you try to include the reader and don’t inject yourself into the narrative except as an example of what you’re talking about) — not to mention the same crisp, clear language.

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