WilsonHines

665 Words

As some of you already know…

I am a truck driver. I have been many things. I have attended a conservative Bible college in the early 90’s; came home to work with my dad in his trucking business; ventured into the world of tech at the turn of the century for a few years; married and moved to Michigan with the love of my life; move back to North Carolina in the mid-2000’s and trucked more; left trucking for more college (liberal arts, concentrating on European History), while selling life and health insurance; finally getting back in the saddle full time hauling various types of petroleum. I currently haul LP (propane) in the fall and winter and gas/fuel in the spring and summer. That’s literally the summary of my working life. “I’ve been everywhere, man.” I’ve literally driven over 2,000,000 miles.

I’ve seen a thing or two, because I’ve done a thing or two.

So, why write? Wilson, what's your “writing prompt.”

I've always been able to tell a story. Story telling isn't always fiction. I've always been able to come into a public setting and be the guy that someone says, “Hey Wilson, tell them about the time...” It's natural for me. I've never had to lie to make a good real life story worth talking about, I just have always had a way of being able to craft a true story to keep it true and still make it interesting. There's a reason why there is such a thing as reality TV; because reality is just as funny and interesting as fiction, for the most part.

My writing prompt

About the last week in January 2022, I had a co-worker and friend become very sick, to the point of death. He just had his 59th birthday a couple weeks before this event. It's complicated, but he basically had a clot in his leg. This man was the super trucker of truckers. He was the guy that everybody thought was invincible; one who they could absolutely rely upon to get the job done regardless of the conditions and challenges. In a matter of a couple days, he became a shell of a human being. After a couple very invasive and life threatening surgeries, 14 days in ICU, and now rehabbing at home, he is on the mend, but it will be at least six months before he can come back to work.

Update: When I wrote this, I was unaware that the very same day I was writing this that my friend has a huge medical setback. As of this writing, he’s back in ICU after another emergency surgery and the six months timeframe is looking rather bleak.

This was a wake up call for me

A week ago, I turned 48. Am I just 10 years from such a disastrous diagnosis? Currently, I work my ass off. I work constantly. I don't even mind it. If there is anything to do, I'll do it. I don't say “no” to anything. If they dish out the work, I do the work. It was the way I was raised.

My goal is to write...

I love writing. I've always loved writing and I've done quite a bit of writing through the years. I've had poetic and short story work published in academic journals. In my mind, it became time to polish this craft with the intent on writing novels based on my life as a trucker.

When you say the word “novel,” it’s such an intimidating word. However, when you break it down into chunks, it’s not as intimidating as you’d think. I’ll talk about this more later.

From here out...

...I will share with you my journey on how I am learning to write...professionally.

Will you follow me?

Will you join me on this journey? Subscribe to this blog to see the progression, get short stories regarding the characters of my novel to whet the whistle, and more.