Wade Rouse

My girlfriend, Ashlee, is currently taking a creative nonfiction class at Kalamazoo Valley Community College (KVCC). One of the books she has been reading for the class is "At Least In the City Someone Would Hear Me Scream" by Wade Rouse. She cracked the book open for the first time the other day while we were having coffee at Fourth Coast, proceeding to read aloud to me the first chapter. I could not stop laughing. The humor was spot on, down to earth, and most importantly, honest. I am waiting for her to finish before I start reading it myself, but she has nothing but good things to say so far.

Today I had the treat of seeing Wade as he read excerpts from his book and shared some personal experiences and influences with the audience. He was invited to come speak at KVCC by Ashlee's teacher, who attends the same gym as him. He was very insightful and inspiring. He talked about moving to the woods of Michigan from New York City to get away from his material life and pursue his dream of writing, much like a modern day Thoreau.

One thing he said that struck a chord with me was to pursue your dreams, no matter what anyone else tells you. I know this is one of the most cliche sayings out there, but what he said next made more sense to me than any stupid bumper sticker or inspirational speaker ever has. He talked about having a successful career in public relations for twenty years, hating it, then throwing everything away to do what he was passionate about. He talked about not knowing anyone in the business of publishing, but through constant work, he was picked up by a major publisher (Random-House Publishing House). He talked about the act of writing, the dedication and hard work. Everything he said made sense to me. It was all stuff that I want to pursue in my life time.

I have wanted to start a blog for a few weeks now, and through both the encouragement of Ashlee and the inspiration of Wade, here it is. I will be updated a few times a week, posting random thoughts, poetry, writing prompts, and other interesting things I come across. Thanks for reading.