A Quiet Person with a Story to Tell
The idea for The Kodiak did not arrive as a complete story.
It came to me in pieces.
Before I fully understood what I wanted to write, I joined Toastmasters. One of my first speeches was about why I had decided to join. I remember describing myself with a sentence that has stayed with me ever since:
“I’m a quiet person with a story to tell.”
At the time, I do not think I understood how true those words were.
Being quiet does not mean a person has nothing to say. Sometimes it means the story is still forming. Sometimes the words are present, but the courage, opportunity, or clarity needed to share them has not yet arrived.
For me, Toastmasters was one step toward finding my voice. It challenged me to stand in front of others and speak instead of allowing every thought to remain inside. That experience did not immediately turn into a novel, but it helped prepare me for one.
Over time, the pieces began to connect. Ideas that once seemed unrelated started revealing themselves as parts of the same story. Feelings I had not known how to explain began taking the form of characters, conflicts, and scenes.
Now, I am truly beginning to see the story I was talking about.
It is larger than a single speech or a single moment of inspiration. It is a story shaped by grief, faith, fear, strength, music, and the many different parts of myself I have come to recognize.
I was a quiet person with a story to tell.
In many ways, I still am. The difference is that now I am telling it.
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