For the last seven months, I’ve been asked the same questions everywhere I go: “How’s retirement?” I usually respond with something like “Great! I’m good at it!” Truth is, it’s not an easy answer. Even though I was ready to hang up my notebook as a reporter and move into the next chapter of my life, I do miss a lot of things about working in a newsroom. The day to day excitement of breaking news, the challenge of making sure our reporting is accurate and fair, and the pure joy of meeting interesting people and having the privilege to tell their stories.
Most of all, I miss my co-workers, many of whom are among my best friends. WXII is filled with wonderful, dedicated people, both on and off the air. I miss the daily exchange of creative ideas, and the camaraderie that only comes with working so closely with people under the intense pressure of deadlines and live television. I still keep up with many of the people at WXII, but it’s just not the same as being there.
That said, I’m extremely happy in my new career as a full-time writer. Creative writing was always something I did in my spare time, but when you have a family and a job that often required 60 or 70 hours a week, there wasn’t much “spare” time. Penning a novel used to take me years of late nights and early mornings. Now it’s just a matter of months before I can complete a good first draft of a project. I try to go at it like a regular job, keeping normal office hours and putting in overtime when necessary, or when the spark of creativity hits me and I just have to get my thoughts down on paper.
So far I’ve been able to write a Christmas musical (Welcome to Virginia, which will be performed at Theatre Alliance in Winston-Salem starting November 29th), the screenplay for The Road to Devotion which has been picked up for a movie, and my latest novel, The Sea is Silent, which should be out in just a few weeks. I’ve also completed the first draft of a young adult novel which I’m letting some friends read now. In addition, I’m reading more, especially local authors. I’m so busy, I really don’t know how I ever had time to hold down a real job.
So the while the short answer to “how’s retirement?” is still “Great!”, the complete answer is “I do miss the news business, but I’m as happy and fulfilled as I can be in pursuing my passion of creative writing.”
I look forward to sharing more words and thoughts with my readers!
All the best, Cameron
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