When
I was in the fifth grade, I had to write a paper during African American
History month. My assignment was on
Benjamin Banneker, a great scientist and thinker. He was credited with authoring an almanac and
writing correspondence to Thomas Jefferson regarding slavery and equality. To be perfectly frank, I wasn’t as interested
in the subject as I was with the arrangement of the words on paper. It was this very assignment that made me
realize that I wanted to be a writer.
Fast forward a little over thirty
years and I find myself on the set of a horror film. I have no illusions of being an actor (or
even believing that I have acting talent).
However, I love horror films and it has been a secret childhood dream of
mine to be a victim or an extra (preferably a zombie) in a genre film. That dream was realized roughly two weeks
ago. During a weekend (Friday – Sunday)
I sat for a few minutes in a chair while an artist made my skin look decayed
and my skin looking ashen and pale.
Following that, I shambled down the back alleys and condemned buildings
of downtown Grand Rapids looking for humans to devour.
And boy did I have a good time doing
it!
I channeled my inner 10 year old
those nights and played pretend. I was
doused in faux-blood and devoured human flesh by night while a crew cheered on
my group and gave us directions. I must
say that as a horror writer, it really got me charged up to start writing.
Anyone that knows me knows that I do
not like having my picture taken, I am using a very shy person, and the last
thing I want to do is to be noticed by anyone.
Interestingly enough, this died away when we were filming this
movie. One of the many lessons I’ve
learned as a writer (and teacher) has been that creativity breeds
creativity. Just being in a bookstore
and seeing such creative outlets all around me inspires me to write. Being among creative visionaries such as the
director, the makeup artists, and the many actors have inspired me to get my
pen moving and to do something creative, as well.
Creativity can be found anywhere. One of the reasons why I haven’t been writing
much is because of my son. Being a first
time father can be quite demanding, but watching him explore and find
wonderment in the things that I take for granted is nothing short of awe
inspiring. Watching Mason begin to
exercise his creativity has been the most exciting time in my life.
And now…I must write.
