Recently I had the honour of interviewing a good friend, Kevin Boudreau. Besides being the main editor for this website, he is also a blog contributor and someone I bounce ideas off of. An avid reader just about all his life, he has taken to dedicating more time to thinking about and delving into creative writing within the last 5 years. He has been especially active in creating after having agreed to work with me in a project we have talked about for some time.
So beyond offering his valuable time to this site`s expansion and evolution, he has also surrendered time for me to pick his brain on a few ideas and challenges many creators think about and struggle with.
Josh: You`ve said that you haven`t really gotten into writing before about five years ago; what was the spark that got you started?
Kevin: I don`t know, I think I always wanted to; it was always in the back of my mind. When you are a reader like I am and are constantly reading you can`t help but think: I have this idea, I wonder how it would work? But honestly it`s after talking to you, getting to know you a little more, reading some of your stuff that I thought: maybe I should try this.
Josh: How come you haven`t really written anything before those five years?
Kevin: I never really took the time. It was in the back of my mind. It was like: someday I`ll try it.
Josh: Too, you and I have talked about this in the past. Thoughts like: This isn`t good enough, or no one is going to get this can be a barrier to people getting what`s inside of them out.
Kevin: The people who are really creative and really touch people are the ones that don`t let that stop them.
Josh: And to be fair, there are those who create things that we might not find appealing but still manage to get their stuff out there, to get published. How important is that to you that you touch someone with your work?
Kevin: I`m afraid that nobody will get it, that no one will get anything out of it. Somebody will do what I do, read the first page and put it aside.
Josh: But you`re writing now, How do you push past some of these concerns? These obstacles?
Kevin: I think the main thing with me is that I don`t think anyone will read my writing. It`s just something to do that`s inside of me... that I want to do.
Thinking that I want to do this for me is part of it. It`s thinking that nobody will ever see it, it`s just for me.
Josh: What`s creativity? Is it a kind of synthesis of ideas, of all these things around you?
Kevin: You see something, you read something, it’s got to have an effect on you, of course it gets you thinking about this or that, how could this have turned out, how would you have done it differently. I think that’s really the basis of creativity.
I don`t think it`s a conscious effort by someone to copy something. It`s just like life: Every decision you make is based on your experience. When you're being creative, it`s based on your creative experience.
Josh: You and I are working on a project. We decided to commit to working on a story together for a year. I do a chapter one month; you do a chapter the next. It`s a twist on the creative process. We had some brief talks about the story line, but decided to leave the rest up to our imaginations as we go along. How`d you find finishing your chapter?
Kevin: I had a couple of ways I wanted to go with it. Basically, it wrote itself, I had a couple ideas about things I wanted to happen, but the details just kinda came out as I typed.
Josh: One sitting? A couple of sittings?
Kevin: Two sittings. My Chapter accidentally got erased. The first thing I wrote (the part that was erased), I really liked it, the second time, it didn`t sound the same, I guess I felt a little discouraged. I put it aside. I came back to it; I read it, said ok this is good and went from there.
Josh: So the second time, different frame of mind, That`s what the motivator was. Now, we`re thinking that we might post our project on the website in the upcoming months. It will be something to look out for.
I want to hear about your experience reading. When did you start really reading for fun? How much do you read now?
Kevin: I can remember when I was a kid, so young, the first thing It seemed I could do was read. I never stopped.
These days I read a book every couple of weeks.
Josh: What keeps you coming back to searching out the next good book? What keeps you reading?
Kevin: A lot of it has to do with the writing. It`s gotta be well written, have good characters, have a good storyline.
Josh: We were talking about putting a book aside if it doesn`t catch your interest. If an experience with an author is bad, then you are less likely to pick up another one of their books. Accurate?
Kevin: When you try anything and have a bad experience with it, you’re not going to go back to that. Right? You don`t want that disappointment again, I mean to me, reading is so much enjoyment, I don’t want it to be a chore, I don`t want to have to think about it too much, I just want to enjoy it.
Josh: Time is precious. Any realizations about writing you want to share?
Kevin: Thinking about some of the stuff I want to write, I realise, the biggest obstacle I have is myself, just to get myself started.
I`d like to thank Kevin for his honest and insightful interview. Writers and creators alike have many of the same thoughts. The very standards we apply to consuming the creative works of others can sometimes be the standards that stem our own creative ventures. But when it comes down to something you want to do – something inside of you, sometimes it`s just a matter of time before it comes out. Why not now?
-Josh
So beyond offering his valuable time to this site`s expansion and evolution, he has also surrendered time for me to pick his brain on a few ideas and challenges many creators think about and struggle with.
Josh: You`ve said that you haven`t really gotten into writing before about five years ago; what was the spark that got you started?
Kevin: I don`t know, I think I always wanted to; it was always in the back of my mind. When you are a reader like I am and are constantly reading you can`t help but think: I have this idea, I wonder how it would work? But honestly it`s after talking to you, getting to know you a little more, reading some of your stuff that I thought: maybe I should try this.
Josh: How come you haven`t really written anything before those five years?
Kevin: I never really took the time. It was in the back of my mind. It was like: someday I`ll try it.
Josh: Too, you and I have talked about this in the past. Thoughts like: This isn`t good enough, or no one is going to get this can be a barrier to people getting what`s inside of them out.
Kevin: The people who are really creative and really touch people are the ones that don`t let that stop them.
Josh: And to be fair, there are those who create things that we might not find appealing but still manage to get their stuff out there, to get published. How important is that to you that you touch someone with your work?
Kevin: I`m afraid that nobody will get it, that no one will get anything out of it. Somebody will do what I do, read the first page and put it aside.
Josh: But you`re writing now, How do you push past some of these concerns? These obstacles?
Kevin: I think the main thing with me is that I don`t think anyone will read my writing. It`s just something to do that`s inside of me... that I want to do.
Thinking that I want to do this for me is part of it. It`s thinking that nobody will ever see it, it`s just for me.
Josh: What`s creativity? Is it a kind of synthesis of ideas, of all these things around you?
Kevin: You see something, you read something, it’s got to have an effect on you, of course it gets you thinking about this or that, how could this have turned out, how would you have done it differently. I think that’s really the basis of creativity.
I don`t think it`s a conscious effort by someone to copy something. It`s just like life: Every decision you make is based on your experience. When you're being creative, it`s based on your creative experience.
Josh: You and I are working on a project. We decided to commit to working on a story together for a year. I do a chapter one month; you do a chapter the next. It`s a twist on the creative process. We had some brief talks about the story line, but decided to leave the rest up to our imaginations as we go along. How`d you find finishing your chapter?
Kevin: I had a couple of ways I wanted to go with it. Basically, it wrote itself, I had a couple ideas about things I wanted to happen, but the details just kinda came out as I typed.
Josh: One sitting? A couple of sittings?
Kevin: Two sittings. My Chapter accidentally got erased. The first thing I wrote (the part that was erased), I really liked it, the second time, it didn`t sound the same, I guess I felt a little discouraged. I put it aside. I came back to it; I read it, said ok this is good and went from there.
Josh: So the second time, different frame of mind, That`s what the motivator was. Now, we`re thinking that we might post our project on the website in the upcoming months. It will be something to look out for.
I want to hear about your experience reading. When did you start really reading for fun? How much do you read now?
Kevin: I can remember when I was a kid, so young, the first thing It seemed I could do was read. I never stopped.
These days I read a book every couple of weeks.
Josh: What keeps you coming back to searching out the next good book? What keeps you reading?
Kevin: A lot of it has to do with the writing. It`s gotta be well written, have good characters, have a good storyline.
Josh: We were talking about putting a book aside if it doesn`t catch your interest. If an experience with an author is bad, then you are less likely to pick up another one of their books. Accurate?
Kevin: When you try anything and have a bad experience with it, you’re not going to go back to that. Right? You don`t want that disappointment again, I mean to me, reading is so much enjoyment, I don’t want it to be a chore, I don`t want to have to think about it too much, I just want to enjoy it.
Josh: Time is precious. Any realizations about writing you want to share?
Kevin: Thinking about some of the stuff I want to write, I realise, the biggest obstacle I have is myself, just to get myself started.
I`d like to thank Kevin for his honest and insightful interview. Writers and creators alike have many of the same thoughts. The very standards we apply to consuming the creative works of others can sometimes be the standards that stem our own creative ventures. But when it comes down to something you want to do – something inside of you, sometimes it`s just a matter of time before it comes out. Why not now?
-Josh
RSS Feed
