E³ Writer Q&A — William Davidson
Infrequent writer with my head in the stars
Malky McEwan recently started up the E³ — Entertain Enlighten Empower publication on Medium and invited me to be one of his writers along with a large number of others. Every writer is invited to complete a Q&A to help readers get to know us, but I’ve avoided this so far because I don’t like feeling vulnerable. Here are my responses to some of the questions.
The book I’m writing
I wrote a science fiction novel over the course of 3 months in 2020 while I was recovering from surgery, though it has not been published. I started writing a sequel immediately afterwards, but that got sidelined by home renovations, a house move, and my real job, so I’m only about a quarter of the way through. I’ve now returned to the second one, and I split my occasional bouts of creativity between editing the first one, adding to number two, writing things on Medium that I usually don’t publish, and a new third book.
The third book that I’ve recently started writing is a near-future sci-fi book that, among other things, has the somewhat bold aim of exploring lasting marital love, and the possibility of continuing that relationship beyond a normal life span. Not sure if I have the chops to write this new one.
My favourite character
Han Solo. He’s the kind of guy who said “Don’t get cocky” despite regularly displaying a level of bravado that would usually be described as cocky. He pretends that he doesn’t care, and tries to convince himself as much, but he will always do what’s right for his friends. He’s been elevated beyond his area of expertise, but he just goes with it anyway. He’s faking it and relying on luck basically all the time. I grew up with Han as well as Indiana Jones and other Harrison Ford characters, so he can pretty much do no wrong in my books, even as a grumpy, eighty-year-old man.
I’ve been elevated beyond my abilities or training in basically every job I’ve ever had, and people have always had more faith in me than I’ve had in myself, so, as a result, I’ve always had to “fake it ‘till you make it”. I guess I’ve always felt like Han was a bit of a kindred spirit.
This makes me cry
EVERYTHING! Turns out that being a father, working as a police officer, and struggling with anxiety, depression, or whatever else it is can make you sensitive to all sorts of things. The happy endings of children’s movies usually make me choke up. Dramatic movies about real-life situations. The parts where a parent or child dies in a movie are a guarantee. Unexpected generosity toward me or my family. Traumatic events happening to families. Pets suffering. Loss of a loved one. Remembering those we’ve lost. Suffice to say, there’s been a lot of tears lately.
My favourite music
Rock, Indie, folk, alt-country, or old folksy country sometimes. I’ll forever go back to Dire Straits — Brothers in Arms, U2 — Achtung Baby, Counting Crows — August and Everything After, and anything by Great Big Sea and old Bruce Springsteen. Currently listening to a lot of more modern stuff like Vampire Weekend, Bleachers, Mt. Joy, Dan Mangan, Bronze Radio Return, and whatever else Spotify thinks will go with my algorithm.
I’m happiest when
I’m on the ocean. Whether on a beach, on a boat, in the water, or on a paddleboard, the ocean always calls to me. I also like being around my wife and children. We have a pretty tight family. Ocean plus family is pretty much perfection.
I write about
I usually write about whatever is nagging at the back of my mind. Or, I write science fiction and fantasy because I need to escape from the things that are nagging at the back of my mind.
I’m currently trying to avoid ranting about things too much because I want to connect more with my happy side, so I’ve started writing down some stories about the dumb things I did as a young adult instead.
Why I’m on Medium
I love writing, but I usually can’t muster the brain power to work on one of the novels I’m attempting to write after a 12-hour shift of soul-sucking police work and police report writing. Medium gives me the opportunity to occasionally write about the things that bug me or keep me up at night, but I can also try out story ideas, and work on my writing style in little bite-sized pieces. I’ve found that just putting my work out there for twelve or thirteen people to read is helping me to build confidence in myself and my writing.
This book changed my life
The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, hands down. I’d never read a humorous book prior to discovering The Guide at about age twenty, and I didn’t even know that a novel could make you laugh out loud. Douglas Adams’ dry wit has inspired my own writing, and I’ve carried his sense of humour with me throughout my life ever since I first discovered it.
I should add that I was primed and ready for these books by a childhood steeped in Monty Python and other British humour. I still pick up the Guide whenever I need to lighten up a bit, or if I’m just out of books and need to grab something quickly.
Where is your favourite place in the world
Maybe this is cliche and/or ridiculous, but I fucking love Disneyland. We took my kids there in March of 2023, and I’d go back tomorrow if I could afford it.
I fully expected that the crowds and lineups would make me feel messed up, uncomfortable and anxious, but Disneyland had the opposite effect. It was just too happy and fun.
The rides were awesome, and the entire atmosphere was just jubilant. The staff appeared happy, and they did a fantastic job of staying in character. The guests have all paid around a hundred US bucks a day (per person) to be in the happiest place on earth, so they were stubbornly happy, even in the face of adversity, like when their small child in a stroller was crying, or when one of their children was scared of the yeti on the Matterhorn so one parent had to sit this one out. None of the crying children were mine, and none of the guests seemed to have ill intent.
Nobody looked like they wanted to steal my wife’s wallet or hit their spouse, so I didn’t have to be on guard. I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face for our entire trip. A few law enforcement officer friends have since told me that they feel the same way about Disneyland, so it doesn’t seem like I’m an outlier.
I’m skeptical about
People who sell used items online. In fact, I don’t trust people at all if I don’t know them. I’m too jaded from dealing with dishonest people and thieves at work, so I just assume that every time someone’s selling something, it’s probably because they stole it. I am aware that this is a biased and unhealthy way of looking at the world, but it doesn’t make it any easier.
I’m working on it.
My Favourite word
Fuck.
My Question: My favourite writer on Medium
Look up Patrick Metzger. He has a fantastic albeit often sardonic wit and a dry sense of humour that permeates everything he writes. He writes about climate change, social justice, clever opinion pieces, satirical jabs at current events, and even bizarre fantasy stories. It’s rare that I read one of his stories and don’t have at least a half-decent chuckle.
