Fifteen years ago, my world operated out of my left brain—the side that deals with the facts and numbers and organizational skills I needed to run my business—but the right side of my brain was screaming at me to let some creative energy flow. As a kid, I fancied myself a decent writer, so I decided to nurture that creative voice with a class at the local community college. The class I chose was “The Art of Fine Writing” taught by a local author, Bruce Taylor.

Bruce’s Shadow

To say Bruce changed my life is an understatement. He taught me how to write, what to write, and most importantly, why we write (and why we may have been programmed to believe we couldn’t write). Bruce told me I could open that door and soon the words started jumping out of my brain and onto the page. Each exercise brought out more and one day Bruce’s prompt led me to create a character who turned out to be a major force in my first novel. A novel! I never thought I would actually write a novel, much less get it published, but Bruce gave me the confidence to move forward. Without that class and an unlikely hero named Bruce Taylor, my life would have followed a very different and much less satisfying path.

We never know who may walk into our lives and take our journey in a different direction. Have you ever wondered if you may be that person in someone else’s life? Everyone we meet touches our lives in some way either for a moment or for a lifetime. Maybe I am that person for someone as Bruce was for me.

There were many steps along the way in my writing journey, but I took that first step with Bruce. So, because of him, I am now an author—a dream come true. I wish I could tell him, but I can’t because…

In memory of Bruce Taylor

Bruce Taylor died last week.  And although I thanked him for teaching me “The Art of Fine Writing”, I wish I had gone a step further and told him what a profound effect he had on my life. I thought I had all the time in the world to let him know. The truth is, we only have today, and we need to tell the people in our lives what they mean to us. I wish I had told Bruce.

Rest in peace, Bruce Taylor. You made a difference in many lives and I will be forever grateful that I met you in my quest to learn “The Art of Fine Writing”.