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| C. Kevin Thompson |
It wasn’t too long ago. I was sitting in my office, tapping
away at the keyboard, trying to meet a deadline, when the doorbell rang. Our
oldest daughter and her family had arrived. An expected visit to drop off our
two grandsons so Mom and Dad would go out and remember why they started this
whole plan years ago.
“He’s in his office.”
He bebopped in, a big smile on his face. “Hey, Papa.”
“Hey, buddy. Did you come to see me?” I extended my arms for
a hug.
“Yep.” He gives me a hug and looks at the computer screen.
“Whatchadoin’?”
Wanting to see how the wheels would turn in that
over-imaginative head of his, I said, “Papa is writing a book.” (I knew it
would spark interest because he’d just started learning how to read, and books
were such a new, “cool” thing to him.)
“You’re writing a book?”
The look on his face was precious. The wonder in his eyes and the astonishment
in his tone said it all.
“Did you know Papa has already written a book? As a matter
of fact, Papa has written two books so far.” I got up, went to the bookshelf,
and retrieved my copies of The Serpent’s
Grasp and 30 Days Hath Revenge
and handed them to him.
“Whoa,” he said, mesmerized by their thickness and weight
compared to the Dr. Seuss books he’d been devouring of late. “You wrote these?”
I nodded and took one of them. I opened it to the author
page in the back and showed him my picture. “You know this guy?”
I’ll never forget the look on his face. Wonderment mixed
with a sense of pride is the only way I can describe it. “Yeah. That’s you,” he
said with a big grin.
He stared at my picture. He then flipped the book back to
the front cover and studied it. “Thirty days hath revenge,” he said, sounding
out the words and saying them as perfectly as a six-year old could. He
continued, “C. Kevin Thompson.” He looks up at me. “Hey, that’s you.”
My smile was bigger on the inside. “Sure is, buddy.”
“That’s pretty cool, Papa.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
He nodded, still gazing at the cover. “I don’t like the
blood on the cover, though (He was looking at the first edition cover).”
“You know what? Neither do I. That’s why we’re changing it.”
I opened the file on my computer, and showed him what the new cover looked
like.
He squinted as if someone had just asked him to eat
earthworms for breakfast. “I don’t like that one, either. It’s scary.”
“Well, buddy,” I said, “it’s a big people book, so I
wouldn’t expect someone your age to like it.” However, I was thinking, “Yes! If he thinks it’s scary, maybe adults
will be intrigued.” (We’re always looking for encouragement, aren’t we?
Wherever we can find it.)
Landon set the book down, gave me another hug, and peered at
the computer screen again. “Do you think I could ever write a book when I get
older?”
Folks, that’s when everything crystallized for me.
I know, as writers, we dream, plan, even fantasize about the
“what ifs?” and the “possibilities.” I know we agonize about the “could’ves,”
“should’ves,” and “would’ves.” We get mired in shop talk about advertising,
bottom lines, and latest trends. We get “acronymed” to death with ROIs, CBAs,
KDPs, BBs, and WIPs. OMG, right?
For me, though—after that conversation with my grandson—this
entire writing journey is more about a legacy than it is about legal tender. I
want Landon, and my other grandchildren—all five of them—to not only have a
love for reading, but see it as something more. I want them to ask me questions
about the biz. I would love for them to go to a writers’ conference with me
someday. Know that there’s a world out there we call “publishing” that
encapsulates some many opportunities. And even if they never choose a career in
this field, at least they can appreciate the hard work that goes into one of
these things we call “a book.” That they can appreciate what chasing a dream is
all about. That their love for learning, imagining, and wondering will somehow
expand because of the measly words I leave on a page. That someday, they’ll
pass that curiosity and desire to know along to their children, and books will
be an ever-growing, integral part of their lives.
That’s when you know you’ve truly succeeded as a writer. Like
the legacy a police officer leaves with his family as generation after
generation of law enforcement officers flow from that fountainhead. Or the
teacher who examines her family tree only to find various kinds of educators
strewn throughout the branches. A writer who produces a legacy of book lovers,
however that love manifests itself in the way of a career, is what it is all
about for me. That’s what keeps me writing.
Jesus said in Matthew 6:33 (KJV), “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all
these things shall be added unto you.” “All these things”—what we will eat,
what we will wear, the things of this world we need to exist—Jesus said would
happen. It was a promise by Emmanu-el,
The With Us God. There’s just one thing we must do: His kingdom and His
righteousness must be sought after first. Of course, that means we must
repurpose our personal lives every day in this pursuit. However, in that quest,
we leave a wake. We leave a footprint. We leave a legacy. And I can think of no
better legacy than to have my children and grandchildren “seek ye first” as
well, and when doing so, take pride in knowing Papa T applied what he learned
and became in Christ to some words on a page.
I can’t imagine being that author who’s at the top of every
bestseller list known to man, yet he’s also the author with children and
grandchildren who are disinterested in learning. Always in trouble with the law
because of a lack of education. Always in the headlines, not because of who
they are, but because of who I am as the bestselling writer. Yeah, I know there
are many tangibles and intangibles involved in the entire process we call
“parenting,” but establishing a legacy that lasts is so important.
Someday, I’m hoping Landon will be able to hug his son or
daughter, and when their old enough, be able to hold one of my books in his
hands and say something like, “Did you know Papa T wrote this? As a matter of
fact, he’s written a bunch of books.” Then, he takes his child over to the
bookshelf and pulls one after another after another off the shelf, watching the
same gleam twinkle in the eyes of his child.
And who knows, that little guy or gal just might wind up
being the next Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Or maybe he or she writes a
treaty that mends fences between two warring nations. Or maybe he or she
becomes the next Edward Stratemeyer or Pleasant Rowland.
As wonderful as those possibilities sound, all those crowns
will be tossed at the feet of Jesus. It is my prayer that the legacy they leave
will be their crown.
A
Clandestine Mission.
A
Cryptic Message.
A
Chaste Promise.
Blake
Meyer dreamed of a peaceful end to a dutiful career with the FBI. Married now,
his life was taking him in a new direction—a desk job. He would be an analyst.
Ride it out until retirement. Be safe so he could enjoy his grandchildren some
day.
But when
a notable member of the IRA is murdered in a London flat, Blake’s secretive
past propels him into the middle of a vindictive, international scheme so
hellish and horrific, it will take everything Blake possesses—all of it—to save
the United States from the most diabolical terrorist attack to date.
C. KEVIN THOMPSON
is an ordained minister with a B.A. In Bible (Houghton College, Houghton, NY),
an M.A. in Christian Studies (Wesley Biblical Seminary, Jackson, MS), and an
M.Ed. in Educational Leadership (National-Louis University, Wheeling, IL). He
presently works as an assistant principal in a middle school.
His latest book, 30
Days Hath Revenge - A Blake Meyer Thriller: Book 1, is now available! Book
2 of the Blake Meyer Series, Triple Time,
is now available for pre-order! Book 3, The
Tide of Times, will be out in August 2017! Also, the second edition of The Serpent’s Grasp will be out in May
2017 through Hallway Publishing!
Kevin is a huge fan of the TV series 24, The Blacklist, Blue Bloods, and Criminal Minds, loves anything to do with Star Trek, and is a Sherlock Holmes fanatic, too.
To connect with Kevin and learn more, please visit:
Website: www.ckevinthompson.com/
Kevin’s Writer’s Blog: www.ckevinthompson.blogspot.com/
Facebook: C.
Kevin Thompson – Author Fan Page
Twitter: @CKevinThompson
Goodreads: C.
Kevin Thompson
