Friday's Star: John Myers
My name is John Myers and I am a teacher and a writer. Life has given me many learning experiences and I love to use them to create pieces that together, weave a tale about its ups and downs, highs and lows, and everything in between. An avid music enthusiast, I love to employ songs from the soundtrack of my life to tell the story.
Christina: Hi John. Welcome to Mandy’s Pages, and it is a pleasure to interview you today. Please tell our readers a little about yourself.
John: My name is John Myers and my writing reflects the person I am in real life, sometimes funny, often thoughtful and always enthusiastic about the topics I like to write about.
I know you as a writer. How was it when you first started writing? What made you start?
The very first time I sat down to write was exciting, to say the least, especially once I submitted the piece to a website for publication. I'd always felt I had something to contribute to the general discussion and I couldn't wait to have my say.
As a writer, you have to constantly be aware of the world around you and what readers want to read, rather than what you want to say. How do you get your ideas to write for a willing audience?
Ideas come to me all the time, whether it is through current events, circumstances in my own life, or sometimes I'm even inspired simply by a song I hear on the radio.
John, I believe you mostly write about music. Is that correct?
I am an avid music enthusiast, so a good portion of my pieces involve music in one form or another. My most popular blog feature on my blog, "John's World," is my daily "Song of the Day" post, within which I often interweave personal commentary on the song or the artist with the music itself. I think music is something everyone can relate to, and I enjoy telling stories around how different pieces and genres of music have been a part of my life. I also write a lot of album and concert reviews, social commentary and I dabble in the occasional poem.
So, would it right to assume you consider yourself an expert in your field? That is, if you are to keep a daily commitment to informing readers about your world of music, you have to be an expert, passionate about music and dedicated enough for it not to be just a passing whim.
Totally! I was a disc jockey for 12 years and that role was borne out of my love for music to begin with. While many turn to the boob tube for entertainment, I almost always turn to my iPod to get me going. Here's a recent quote from a blog post that sums up my feelings about music:
"Songs are poems set to music, and they tell us stories, give us advice, and they sometimes validate what we're feeling, that we're not alone. They bring us warm summer breezes and cold lonely nights. They bring out a rise in us at a concert hall or on the dance floor. No matter what your flavor of music, I'm sure that the songs in your realm do all of these things and more. Music is the soundtrack of our lives, and how it works."
Do you face writing blocks, or do you write only when you feel like writing or have a specific writing agenda like your daily blog posts.
Well, writing is not my main vocation, so my real job leaves me little time for writing, and often when I've got the time to write, curiously that's when finding that enthusiasm can become a little daunting.
So you see, music is my life!
Do you face challenges as a writer?
My biggest challenge is having the ability to focus not only on finding the time to write, but the topics I'm going to write about. I'm learning all the time that I need to focus more on narrowing the types of pieces that I spend my time on. I write for a couple of websites, and sometimes I write about things more out of financial necessity rather than passion about and I'd like to change that.
Here’s one question I enjoy asking all my interviees. If a publisher were to review your work, how do you think they will grade you on a scale from 1 to 10, 10 being the best?
Hmm, that's a good question. If I showed them the pieces I'm most proud of, I'd say they'd give me upwards of an 8.
And how would you rate your quality of writing from 1 to 10?
When I'm writing something I'm passionate about, always a 10.
Excellent! Is there any piece of advice you would give to an aspiring writer?
I would tell an aspiring writer to start with what they know and (I hate to use that word again, but I will) to write what they're passionate about. Once they start producing quality pieces, they should get themselves out there and be seen. If they're writing quality stuff that people want to read, they will read and the rest will come from that.
What stands out for the writer John Myers when he visualizes the future?
Ah, my dream is to one day publish a book (a bestseller, of course, which I've just begun working on) and make enough money so that I'll be able to move into New York City and be inspired to write full time.
I can totally connect with you regarding your passion for music. My world centers around the music I love and it constantly uplifts me. I can see it doing the same for you and together with all our readers and Mandy’s Pages, I wish you the very best in your ambitions to be able to publish that bestseller you so desire to complete. Here’s to an even fuller musical life and fulfilled ambitions. Cheers!
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Get to know more about John Myers at John's World
Image Credit : John Myers
