KEITH KRAMER
When I was young, maybe 9 or 10, I'd visit my Grandmother and stay with her over the weekend. Usually it was about twice per month. She would give me a pen and paper and tell me to write her something. I'd drift off into my mind and write my little heart out. She encouraged me to continue because she genuinely thought I was good at it. When I was 13, she told me that her friend, Mary, had a surprise for me. We went to her car, and in the drunk laid a typewriter.
That, to this day, was one of the most memorable gifts I've ever gotten. Jesus, I spent hours and hours and hours on that thing, banging out everything from fiction books with aliens and demonic spiders to romance. As I got older, for whatever reason, that faded into the background.
The only subject in School that I shined, outside of music, was English. I adored writing.
It hit me late in life that I'd always wanted to write a book. I'm a radio talk show host by trade, but quit the industry in 2019 because it's a wreck of it's former self. I took on doing voiceover, which I do from home. LOTS of free time to think with this freelance career.
One day out of the blue, I just started writing about the industry. After seeing all the bullshit scams all over the web, I wanted to take the profession and cast it in it's true light - the good, the bad, and the ugly. (Money) I'd wake up every day and just frantically type out all this information that was in my head.
After talking to someone who booked me to help her with her voiceover career, one thing that I took most away from what she said during our talks was . . .
She had my book (on Zoom calls) and I could see she had sticky notes in it. She kept going to parts of the book that motivated her, that stood out to her in reference to 'getting out of your head with all the negativity', etc. Out of all the insanely practical and useful information in the book, she got more from when I was speaking from the heart than she did anything.
That one observation inspired me. More More More.
I write everything down on index cards... the huge ones. One morning I sat down and wrote out 5 subjects I need to write books about. I had titles for 2 of them immediately. Now days I just cannot wait to get out of the bed so I can finish up voiceover and write write write.
There is so much more I have to say. I haven't even gotten started. It's my absolute dream and hope that you'll read what this public educated hick from Alabama has to say.
"Following your dreams isn’t some cheesy slogan — it’s a daily decision to get punched in the face and keep walking anyway. Most people quit. You just don’t."
Keith Kramer