The Unexpected Journey From Teacher to Author
My mom says I’m the only person she knows who likes to pull up her roots and move. Born in Kentucky, raised in Connecticut, educated in Massachusetts and Georgia, life was good.
And then, just to put icing on a gluten-free cake, out of the blue I landed my high school sweetheart 15 years after our first kiss <sigh> so I got to move around with his job (yay!).
I am a bonafide move-aholic. In my spare time (if I had any) I try to live a sustainable life, write novels, dance, play, and laugh really hard every day. Occasionally I ask myself, How Did I Get Here?
As a high school science teacher, moving never posed a problem. I could always find employment in a new town. Good thing, because I just love teaching science. It has to be the coolest subject under the sun- environmental, biology, ecology, meteorology, astronomy, geology, oceanography- I love them all. I’ve taught high school and middle school; urban and rural; upper middle class and poverty level; Hispanics, blacks and whites; English as a second language learners and English abusers.
What Kids Want
With all that variety, kids are so similar. They don’t understand how cool science is until you show them. They all want to be accepted. They want to succeed. They want to be admired by their peers and their teachers. They believe stuff is easier for everyone else. Everyone is popular, except them. Everyone is good-looking, except them. In all my schools, the kids think they know more about electronic devices than their teachers (which they do), and they try to make me laugh (which they do).
Sound familiar?
I Write… She Writes
I began writing when I decided to compose the text for our new business website. It seemed a wee bit presumptuous to think I could just pick up a pen and write, so I took Non-Fiction Writing course. Guess what? I was good at it! Who knew? So, I went right out there and… you guessed it… taught science (a girl has to make a living, you know).
Many years later, my daughter became a budding author with her first book in first grade. We still quote from it: “We walked and walked and walked. And we talked and talked and talked. And then we ate chocolate ice cream.”
Pretty eloquent, eh? <proud mommy sniff> A chip off the old block.
She has since graduated from the money pit known as Northeastern University, where she earned an advanced degree in Opinion.
Oh, wait. That was what she graduated high school with…
No, I was right the first time. She graduated from high school with Attitude, and from college with Advanced Opinion.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining. After all, I raised her, and all that strength and resiliency got her through law school. We, with the help of her high school and colleges, produced a young woman who makes us very proud. My parents’ generation called young women like her “tomboys.” My generation called them “bossy women.” Today, they are known as “women” or “leaders.” Objectively speaking, my cherub rocks!
My daughter’s writing made me want to try writing. Eventually, I decided to devote summers to writing, and spend the rest of the year teaching. (We still managed to fit in a move here and there.)
A Funny Thing Happened…
Then, the oddest thing happened. One day I realized I wanted to write more than I wanted to relocate, and I’ve been writing ever since.
My first series is called Love Of Fairs – quirky tales of young people trying to prevail in unusual situations, with a bit of suspenseful intrigue and mystical realism thrown in for good measure.
The first two books of the series, Fairly Certain, and Fairly Safe, debuted in 2014. (Yay!) Whether you go to fairs undercover or for fun, you will enjoy watching these characters trying to overcome the odds.
Buy Fairly Certain: https://amzn.to/34FTrLK
Buy Fairly Safe: https://amzn.to/35KNg8l
My second series is nonfiction, the Awesome Mom Handbooks. How To Keep Your Daughter From Slamming the Door and How To Get Your Happy On are all about how to take care of you, and yours. They are both must-reads for today’s moms.
“Variety is the spice of life.” – Unknown
“If Variety is the spice of life, Humor is my favorite flavor.” –Deborah Ann Davis
*This post was originally published July 16, 2014. (Deborah has been at this for quite a while!)
About the Author
Deborah Ann Davis (B.S. in Science Education, M.Ed. in Supervision, and W.I.T.S Personal Trainer Certified) is a parenting strategist and coach.
Whether you’re looking to bring more positivity into your life, or you’re ready to seek the advice of a Parenting Coach, she’s eager to help you put happiness back into parenting.
Deborah has decades of experience dealing with teenagers – as a mother, and as an educator. Over the years, she has helped hundreds of families, using her expertise and experience.
Learn how to improve your mother-daughter relationship today. Every minute you delay prolongs the isolation your child feels while disconnected from you. She’s waiting for you to figure it out, so why not skip the “trial and error” route?
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