Obi Yonder

I grew up in a smallish desert town in Southern California. As a child, it felt like the valley had scooped up the population of our town—a bowl of people who wearily decided to settle down instead of climbing over. I didn’t want to settle, so I put a grain of truth at the center of my formative years–you only get stuck when you decide to stop moving forward.

Three decades down the line, and I have moved out of the desert, across the US, and found myself in a peculiar situation. I was clear across the country with more autonomy than ever, and yet I found myself feeling stuck. I had a safe and stable job. A house. Wonderful friends. But my life had become cyclical. Like a marble rolling around the edges of the bowl, slowly losing momentum and brushing against the inevitable bottom.

I had to keep moving forward, someway, somehow. So, I asked myself, “If you could choose to do or be anything, what would it be?”. That is how I decided I would become an author. I’m not wealthy, have no credentials or background, but I truly love writing. I want to travel the world, meet people, learn myths, and bring back a bag full of wonders and weave tales from their very fabric. I also, however, want to keep making my mortgage payments and keep the chickens and cats fed.

So, I went back to college—online, in between my full-time job, and compliments of more student debt—to get an English degree as my step one. Don’t get me wrong, formal education is not always the answer and the United States has made it egregiously unaffordable. But, googling was only getting me so far, I was in over my head, and I generally enjoy school.

I’m now 6 months away from my bachelors, and it was honestly a great decision. I have had the wonderfully terrifying experience of having peers read and critique my writing. It’s been a monumental and inspiring experience. I’ve always been pragmatically self-assured, but it turns out that was not the case with my art. Hearing that someone enjoyed a piece that I created filled me with a flavor of joy I’m at a loss to explain. I discovered the ‘literary community’, which prior to this stint in college was on par with the illuminati. And, I learned more about the process of becoming an author, which I aim to demystify for anyone on the googling phase of their authorial dream who stumbles upon this blog.

That brings us to now. I’m starting up my website with only one fully complete piece in hand, a dozen in the works, a sticky note on my phone full of wild ideas, and a singular goal in mind—to keep moving forward. So welcome to the journey! I’ve got a ways to go, and I’d love if you’d come with me. Out of the bowl. Into the wilds. And perhaps we’ll find some chills, thrills, and laughs along the way.

Cheers to this life—short, capricious, and strange as fiction.