Who are you?
My name is James McDevitt. I’m a Christian, a husband, and a father. My professions are firefighter and infantry officer.
What do you write?
A 6th-grade teacher told me she liked my handwriting. It’s extremely small, the opposite of me. Around the same time, I was inspired to write a book after watching Denzel Washington’s movie The Hurricane. I wrote maybe a page, then I forgot about it. I write poetry, short stories, and children’s books, and then decided to write a novel. I treat the keyboard like a piano; the words flow as if I were playing a symphony. That’s where I find peace. My writing? Hmmm, I love psychology, and if I were to describe how I write, I’d say I write to the emotion of others and what they’ll feel. Our stories may be different, but we all have the same emotions. I don’t know if I avoid any themes or words. I do not like the word farther; I’d rather say further. One is a measurement, the other is figurative, but to me, it sounds better. I was told I wrote the word chaos too much by my editor, so I’ll be sure not to use it in the future.
Where do you write?
I built a heavy wooden desk; it sits by the window in my house. To my left, you’ll find a marble chessboard and pieces. You’ll also find a grenade. To my right, I have a mouse pad, ironically with musical notes and chords written on it. Just behind that is where I have my knickknacks and pens (.38 Pilot G-2s). I like ultra-fine points for their precision. In the center is my Mac. It’s covered with notes my wife has written to me over time. Sometimes when I look behind my computer, I’ll see my little baby girl jumping up and down in her jumper in the doorway to the kitchen. I like to play peek-a-boo with her on each side of the monitor.
When do you write?
I write whenever I can. I’d like to have more of a schedule, but having a 7-month-old makes it difficult. I used to try and set word goals of 1,000 to 2,000 words. I’ve even read books on routines to figure out a common theme. They’re all so interesting. The most common among them all is consistency. I must agree.
Why do you write?
I write because I am fascinated with words—they’re timeless and mightier than a sword. The impact of words can last thousands of years. Names are forgotten. Time travel has now been proven. Einstein’s time dilation has been confirmed many times by the Large Hadron Collider. When these small particles (muons, electrons, and protons) travel at 99.999999% the speed of light, traveling to the future becomes possible. However, traveling to the past is still not a possibility. With words, it is. Every person on earth can sit down and have a conversation with Homer, Aristotle, or Shakespeare. We can enter their thoughts, minds, and feelings simply by reading their words. Knowing that I can speak to my wife, my daughter, or any of my family in my future far beyond my time is an incredible feeling. My great-great-great-grandkids can get to know me if they were to one day try to find out where they come from. What motivates and inspires me are God, my family, my friends, and my love for others. There is so much good in the world. Because of our brain’s negative bias, we tend to forget that.
How do you overcome writer's block?
I overcome writer’s block by stepping away from writing—by experiencing new books, movies, shows, and even people-watching. Writing becomes easier when you know most of what you put down will be edited or changed anyway. Getting words on the computer or paper is the first step.
Bonus: What do you enjoy doing when not writing?
I enjoy being a husband and father. It’s the best thing on earth. Every morning I’ll take my daughter into her swing chair and play guitar for her (my practice), then I’ll have a cup of coffee and let my wife sleep in while me and Ottilia play together. She’ll go from her swing to her jumper. This is when I get to sit at the computer and write. Then when my wife is up and the weather is cool, I’ll head outside to finish building my massive chicken coop (the run is almost complete). Then it’s work. I just finished a surface water swim school for the fire department; this weekend I have drill and I’ll be running ranges for the Army National Guard, then next week I have marine firefighting school. Most nights at 6:30 p.m. I’ll be in jiu-jitsu class. I’m one stripe away from my purple belt. I’m also in a program management college course. Then late at night before I fall asleep, I’ll remember to do my Arabic lesson on Duolingo. As of right now, I’m on day 1,287. I’m still terrible at Arabic.
My thanks to James McDevitt for today's interview.