This blog is of course a work in progress. Just know I increased the font size in order to make the copy more readable.
When I consider what to do with what is left of my life, the next and most logical conclusion is to write and publish my memoirs. I have to figure out how to divide my time between this blog and writing drafts for the memoirs.
The way I see it, I can use this blog as a precursor to the book.
In a recent post on Facebook, I lamented the absurd censoring of myself and CARDBOARD BRAINS out of Liz Worth’s book TREAT ME LIKE DIRT. In response to the post I received support from various Facebook friends, many of them entertainment professionals like published author Peter Vronsky. They admonished me to write my memoirs in a tell all fashion.
Which I have been working on for a couple of years, initially with Scott Edward Patterson of UNCOMMON FRANK in Melbourne, Australia.
Today I have begun my writing as soon as I awake as I and Julia Cameron and so many others swear by. I find later on I feel to burned out and lackadaisical to start writing on my little iPad.
The question is autobiography or memoirs. As usual I chose a mixture of column A and column B. An ensemble of memoirs covering my wild ride on earth for 67 years. Probably seventy years I'll be by the time the book is written and published and promoted.
Considering a book is about 100,000 words, I will have to write about 1000 words a day for a 100 days.That’s doable, but I have to get out of sloth mode and put some discipline and purpose in my life. Again, it’s doable I have done it before and I’ll do it again.
I need an editor and what I have always needed is a lawyer. But money is currently tight. However I believe where there is a will there is a way.
I usually list myself as Actor, Writer, Composer. Now I simply list myself as “Artist”.
I am an actor of course having been on since a child. Some who know me would say since birth. Which sort of fits that with acting and writing and the arts your born with it. You either have IT or you don’t. Stephen King says this concerning writing.
My first acting gig was when I was in Grade 2 or 3 when I appeared on Razzle Dazzle with Howie the Turtle and Alan Hamel. I think that was the CBC ( Canadian Broadcasting Corporation). Then it was an endless succession of plays, radio and film. I became a member of ACTRA under the professional reputation clause in 1986. I could have joined earlier.
And of course as a singer-songwriter musician composer producer starting in 1976-1977 when I formed CARDBOARD BRAINS.
TIBOR TAKACS produced th Black and the White Cardboard Brains EPs but I produced my solo venture THE LIFE OF ERMIE SCUB (with help from Stanley A. Viezner who was invaluable especially in th peer-production of THE LIFE OF ERMIE SCUB.
For years TIBOR TAKACS admonished me to write. I once told me while I was staying with him in Los Angeles: “Of all the people I know who write, the one person that should doesn’t, and that’s you.”
In 1975 and 1976 I co-wrote two plays with Rich Allen on entitled “Stranger Gets Closer” and the other entitled “Stranger Gets Closer”. I wrote dialogue for TIBOR TAKACS and STEPHEN ZOLLER’s play “Metal Messiah” and subsequently for TIBOR TAKACS first feature film METAL MESSIAH.
I was Vice President of International X-ray Company from 1969 to 2002 which involved a share of writing, copywriting and legal work and that sort. But in 1984 I started two corporations with my mother and became President of Micro-manipulation Research Inc. And a USA corporation Youngstown-Universal, Inc. 1984to 1989. Also John Paul Young Productions Inc.
With Micro-manipulation Research Inc. I wrote extensive direct marketing pieces every month and had them mailed them to literally every known chiropractor and chiropractic student in the world. Each and every month. I was marketing and administering a technique my father developed entitled MICRO-MANIPULATION. I was published in TODAY’s CHIROPRACTIC on three occasion's, a series of articles entitled MICRO-MANIPULATION by John Paul Young. But the articles were so well done (if I may boast) that I received myriad letters from chiropractors all over the world. They were addressed “DR.” John Paul Young. The articles were technical in nature and they just assumed I was a doctor. I thought that was pretty good. From 1984 to 1989 I was a direct marketing king.
More on all this later, I am simply trying to establish my background with the title “WRITER”.
My academic history is fragmented, but after graduating from high school from the Toronto High Park area HUMBERSIDE COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE (where amongst other things I was President of the Student Council) then I enrolled at RYERSON POLYTECHNICAL UNIVERSITY briefly then on to the University of Toronto where I took Psychology, then later To The University of Western Ontario where I took English Literature, Cinema Studies and Theology. I have a lot more education then that but its feeling a little tedious. My point was establish my background as a writer (artist).
What will my memoirs entail? Well one learned person who I gave an overview of my would be memoirs, and this was twenty years ago said my memoirs would be Mickey Spillane meets Carl Gustav Jung. I think nicely put. In the meantime, until publication this blog will serve as a prime indicator of the contents.
And so it goes.
