Once you get published you don’t suddenly enter a brand new world, with royalties pouring in, kudos and awards. Unless you score a huge contract, life goes on. Writers have families. Families include children. Children need to be fed. (I’ve tried intravenous feeding with the kids, but it doesn’t work long and your reputation as a parent takes a hit.)
For the past nine years I have been doing the two-job shuffle. And both jobs are in the non-profit world. So, guess what? Those royalties are lookin’ real good. No matter unroyal they may be. In Lowell, I work for Community teamwork Inc, which is the local CAP agency. CAP agencies are the local war-against-poverty service organizations. I work on a daily basis with people in crisis. (Hello?) People who are facing eviction, foreclosure, utility shut-offs, domestic violence, you name it. I’m the guy people come to for money. On weekends I work for a wonderful organization called Emmaus Inc. I do overnight shifts for a long-term residents for people with a dual diagnosis. (Drug or alcohol abuse plus schizophrenia or depression or something else) It makes for a busy schedule.
Then there are the kids. My 11-year old daughter Leah is a big time reader. She has been through the entire Harry Potter series at least ten times. But she doesn’t like to write. Or do homework. My nine year old twins, William and Stephen, like doing their homework. But they prefer eating. Stephen is a monster to potatoes. William is a monster to everything.
All in all it makes for a bust life. When do I get to write? Shhh. Don’t tell the bosses. That’s when.
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