treble hook. | A Letter from New York Times Best-selling Author Marc Cameron

All,

First, I want to thank Dr. Reese for the opportunity to speak with you—and thank all of you for coming to listen. I was especially pleased with those of you who asked questions. A large part of creativity, I think, is curiosity. Many asked where I got ideas.

Walking around your beautiful campus brought back memories of my own time at a small college in the Rocky Mountains. I spent much of my freshman year in an outdoor learning program with fourteen other students where classes were taught while hiking, canoeing, horse packing, and mountain climbing.

One of our tasks was to climb the Middle Teton, a 12,809-foot peak in Wyoming. Three quarters of the way to the top, heavy fog rolled in and what was to be a ten-hour out and back hike turned into an overnight ordeal on the mountain—with fog so dense we could barely see one another, let alone the steep drop that fell away to the valley below. That event deserves a story of its own but suffice to say it was one of the more difficult—and rewarding—times of my life.

The novelist Philip Roth said, “Nothing bad can happen to a writer. Everything is material.”

Work, school, relationships, having to listen to some guy from Alaska drone on about writing—can grind us down. It sounds glib, but that grind is what shapes us. Bad days can inform a writer’s stories far more than the easy stuff. My best friends are the ones I have suffered with the most. 

A few years ago, a motorhome pulled out in front of me while I was riding my motorcycle down the Alaska Highway. I came off the bike, fortunately wearing a helmet and full protective gear. I remember thinking as I slid on my back down the lonely Yukon road at thirty miles an hour, the bike tumbling through the air beside me—“This is going to be great in a Jericho Quinn book!”

Thank you again for the opportunity to visit Mount Marty University. Now, go live your life and write your own stories!

All the best—

Marc Cameron

Eagle River, Alaska

DEALING WITH WRITER’S BLOCK AND PROCRASTINATION

MOUNT MARTY STUDENTS REVIEW WRITING FACTS IN FICTION: A DISCUSSION ON COPS AND CRIMINALS — FEATURING NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR MARC CAMERON, DR. STEPHEN BELL, DCI SPECIAL AGENT JAVIER MURGUIA, JEROD W. IBAROLLE, JOSH KLIMEK AND DR. JIM REESE.

^{Editor’s Note: One exciting thing at Mount Marty University are the award-winning authors, filmmakers and artists that visit the campus and talk about creativity. Here is the students’ reaction to the presentation from last fall by New York Times best-selling author Marc Cameron and Cameron’s letter to the MMU community. Stay tuned for more exciting authors visiting campus this fall and spring.}

The campus of Mount Marty University was the host to quite an accomplished and well-known author on an otherwise average Monday in late September. Marc Cameron, author of multiple successful action/thriller series (including current “Jack Ryan” novels) spoke to the Yankton audience about creativity, writing advice, and general lessons he has gained during his remarkable life.

He spoke about creativity and how some people feel that possessing it is out of their control. Even some professional writers will speak of requiring inspiration and needing their muse to “speak to them.” Mr. Cameron shared a story in which he had spoken to his colleague in the publishing business. “Theoretically,” Marc asked, “what would you do if I told you that the muse just wasn’t talking to me right now?” The colleague replied coyly, “Well, I guess I’d find someone the muse was talking to.” The point Cameron made was clear and practical: creativity comes naturally sometimes, but sometimes one must work to stir it up within oneself.

—JOSEPH STIBRAL

I found it very interesting when Marc explained how he “got over” writer's block. Every single writer's presentation (that I have attended) at Mount Marty mentioned how writer's block happens to every writer and it is hard to deal with/get over. However, they never mentioned how to actually, for lack of a better word, move past it and continue writing. Marc, on the other hand, explained that he tries to write as he knows the character would act. “You know the character, build off of that."

—BRYNN DILLY

Regarding criminals, Mr. Cameron made the comment that when he is writing about a “bad guy” character, he keeps in mind that we are all the heroes/protagonists in the movie playing in our heads. This is a perception he gained from working with criminals, and I agree with this statement. The discussion ended with a question about whether evil exists in the world. Mr. Cameron commented that his writing career allows him to take the time to think more deeply about evil and moral judgments when compared to his time working as a police officer because his only goal back then was to arrest criminals to keep the community safe, not make moral judgments.

—TUENEDI VILLICANA

Mark talked about procrastination and how it's easy to do. He will have a due date for a book in six months and the first two months he is not very productive and the last four months he is pushing himself to get it done. My take away from that is that we need to be productive in order to be creative. We need to be more mindful about the time we spend on social media as we could be using that time to write and be more creative. Being creative can make you feel better and can be beneficial towards your overall health and wellbeing.

—BROOKLYNN HAKL

Marc Cameron talked to his audience about creativity. When originally thinking about creativity, you tend to think of something to do with the arts, but the way that Cameron explained it made it clear that creativity can have a broader meaning and application. For example, he explained how taking notes in the margins and being an active reader could help with creativity. I found this advice to be useful, as I want to become a physical therapist, and the tips that he gave us can help me with writing papers throughout graduate school. Another statement that held a strong meaning for me was when he explained that his mentor told him that, "You won’t amount to anything unless you learn to use those 15-minute segments of time that everyone else throws away."

—SAMANTHA NOBLE