Around
8:00, About every night
since November 1st of 2024, my wife,
Maggie,
would give me a kiss and take our dog, Pearl, upstairs to read a book
on her
kindle, then fall asleep to a true crime podcast. That’s when I would
wake up
from about an hour of sleep, leave my recliner and walk ten feet into
my
office, open my laptop and think of the next chapter to add to my first
novel.
I would think of a sentence or two, write a few good paragraphs and
call my
friend, Mark, any time of the night to strategize on a chapter. If I
dozed off
and my forehead landed on my keyboard, I’d give it up, go back to my
recliner
and fall asleep for about four hours. I’d wake up, take a pill to shut
down my
restless leg syndrome and do my very best writing until about 2:30am,
give up again
and go to sleep until 4:00. Then I’d get up and start my workday. I
take my
mantra from a gift store desk sign: Wake up, Kick
Ass, Repeat. After 20 months, two weeks and 3 days, I present to
you my
first book, The Vigilante Shuffle I wish my dad were here to read it.
I hope you like it.
Jeff
Maas |