Hark Scribe

I started a new school in 6th grade. I'd gone to the same school my whole life, with the same class of 20-so peers who I'd grown up with. Come grade 6, I was in a new school and a new class of 20-so peers who had grown up with each other. There was only one other new kid, and he was a loser.

I felt like an outsider, and even though I'd eventually worked my way into the crowd and had made a few good friends and gotten everybody to appreciate how hilarious I can be, there was still that adjustment period. As I settled in, and to get over the new-kid-who's-this-guy feeling, I started to tell a story to the other kids as a joke.

I said I was actually an undercover FBI agent, that I was super-secret because I was so young, but that I had special abilities that manifested themselves suddenly that made me such an ideal candidate. I said that the first time I picked up a gun I was already an expert at it, and that when I'd gotten in a fight at school I kicked butt like I was a blackbelt. It was just something I said to make myself feel like more than just a new kid, it made me feel like I was actually above all this. That there was more to my life.

My real name was Chris Baker, I'd tell them. Don't tell anybody else, I'd say.

Sixth grade is also when I realized that I could write. There was a short story assignment, and while most kids filled their three-page requirement with silly stories about inventing a hoverbike or walking down a dark alley and finding mean kids there, my story was about a young squire for an evil knight in Arthur's court who learned magic from Merlin and stopped a plot for the knight to kill the king. It had exposition, narrative, a climax, and a legitimate conflict resolution.

Over the years, my writing skills developed, but that one idea stuck with me in the back of my mind. What if I was a kid named Chris Baker who suddenly found myself able to do these amazing things? How would that happen? How would I treat it?

That story, and many others brewed in the back of my mind for many years. In math classes, walking home from school, any time there wasn't something occupying my mind, these stories come back and I'd develop them a little bit at a time, then put them back.

Chris' story changed many times and in many ways, whenever I was set on the story I'd grow up a bit and realize the story was too childish. Whenever I had a really good idea, I'd see a movie or TV show that "stole" one of my ideas, so I'd have to change it. I have been writing Chris Baker's life for most of mine.

I knew that if I didn't stop bouncing it around and actually put it down into English words, it was going to take over my mind. Many times I've resolved to write it, once as a screenplay, another time as a book, then one time I thought it would make a good comic book series, then I finally landed on "online serial novel". I'd cut my teeth on writing short fiction, so I'm good at writing compact series of events that seem to always have a twist at the end to keep you interested. I could tell the story in installments, keep readers hooked, always have feedback, and (best for me) have a reason to keep writing.

If I said I was just going to write this story down start to finish, I'd never ever do that. I'd procrastinate until I died. This way, however, there were people who would be expecting updates frequently and that would be motivation enough to keep writing. I came up with that idea before blogs were a thing, then stuff kept happening to sidetrack me, but I finally had some free time a few months ago...

So for those of you who didn't figure it out and that said they didn't want to read Mind + Body because some it was some other loser writing it... SURPRISE! I'm that loser.

I'm pretty sure most people figured it out, though, once the story took off. The reason I pretended it was somebody else writing the story was twofold: first, I wanted to see if anybody would actually believe it; and second, I wanted those people who did believe it to connect with the character. The hardest thing about first-person narrative is that some part of your brain says, "this isn't the character talking, it's some writer guy." For some people, it could be hard to associate with a 17 year old nerd, so thinking he might be real would help you get into the story.

I guess as a third point, I wanted to demonstrate that this is a real-world story. It doesn't take place in magical make-believe land, it's all rooted in reality and (save or a few exceptions) everything that happens could happen.

I also enjoyed having people like my brother try to dance around their suspicion that it was me, without admitting that they thought it was me, and trying to get me to admit it. My sister knew from the first post, somehow.

Today I posted the 30th entry/chapter (!!!) which makes this, by far, the longest thing I've ever written; and I'm very happy with it and very pleased with myself for how it's going. I'm proud enough of it to put my (real) name on it at last.

For those wondering, there is a definite end to the story -- I'm not going to tread water for two years to keep people reading like on Lost. Right now is roughly the halfway point for this section of the story (though I have Chris' life pretty much all planned out, the "Mind + Body" story is only the start). Since I have this monster halfway done, and I've written enough to fill about 120 pages of a hardcover book or 300 pages of a paperback, I'm taking a small break so I can see where I'm going and look into turning it into a book.

I sent some sample chapters to one publisher this week, though I'm not at all hopeful for that one.

Anyway, for those who are reading, thanks... and for those that weren't because you didn't know it was me (you dummy), it's not too late to start now. Next Monday, the story starts again, so you have a whole week to read through it without losing any ground.

-Big Famous Author Man