Regardless of your age, gender, color, background, or which side of town you live on, you deserve to be happy, and always know that you are precious and uniquely special. Please don’t ever let anyone tell you differently.
One of my most enjoyable and greatest perks as a youth advocate and a writer is getting invited to various schools for classroom book talks. I absolutely love being around young, engaging students who genuinely care about their future and what’s currently going on, not only in America, but what’s happening all over the world as well.
Of course, these book talk sessions are primarily about one or two of my books, in which the students had read for a class assignment. But often, these book talks will slightly go off-topic, as a student may ask me a personal question, or perhaps, a student may get inspired to share some personal experience from their own life which relates to the story we’re discussing.
Just before summer break recently, in Kansas, a student had asked me what had inspired me to write my first novel ‘Wet Matches’? I love answering this particular question because it gives me a chance to talk about turning your negative experiences into something positive.
On the surface, we all know that ‘Wet Matches’ is about five homeless teens getting a second chance at a better life when a California couple takes them in. But the deeper origin and backstory of why I wrote ‘Wet Matches’ stems from my memory of being called the N-word at age 5 by a bigoted White man at a grocery store in Fredericksburg, Virginia.
I’ll never forget how low and dirty I felt when he’d called me that awful name. It made me feel worthless, like ‘wet matches’. So, as I got older and started to write more and more, I eventually turned this awful childhood experience into something positive. As I began to work on the first draft of ‘Wet Matches’, I would make quite a few changes to the plot and storyline but I always stayed true to the underlying tone and central theme, which is that absolutely no one, including the 5 homeless teens, should ever be treated in such a way that makes them feel worthless, no good, like ‘wet matches’.
As I’m telling the students about the deeper origin of ‘Wet Matches’, I always love it when one of the students suddenly feels moved to share a bad experience from their own life and then the whole class gets to weigh in on possible different ideas and ways to turn the student’s negative experience into something more positive.
‘Wet Matches’ won the Quarter-Finals Prize at the Writers Network Fiction Competition in Los Angeles. In 2012, The White House honored me with the President Volunteer Service Award due to the awareness ‘Wet Matches’ raised about teen homelessness and its correlation with rising HIV issues in America. (This 2012 Presidential Award is signed by President Barack Obama, and is encased and displayed in my hometown at the John J. Wright Educational Cultural Center Museum, located at 7565 Courthouse Road in Spotsylvania County, Virginia.)
As many of you journey through life, I hope that you also will try your best to turn any negative experiences into something more positive. – Randolph Randy Camp
Learn more at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp
Whatever you want to do in life you can do it. I didn’t realize it back then but the seeds of becoming a writer probably were planted years ago in rural Spotsylvania County when I used to sit along the banks of the Rappahannock River and sort of daydream for hours while watching the water flow.
Yep, when I was a little boy I definitely was one of them book nerds who paid more attention to the Rappahannock Regional Mobile Library route schedule rather than caring whether or not if the Washington Redskins beat the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
I owe some of my early dedication to a few of my elementary school teachers in Spotsylvania who gave me encouragement, especially when I naively would tell friends and classmates about some of the wild stories and dreams in my head and how the Rappahannock River was like a friend to me. I eventually became a somewhat quiet, shy kid because some of these kids would make fun of me and call me crazy. But I’ll never forget the day when one of my teachers said, “Randy, you’re not crazy, people tend to quickly call anything crazy that they don’t understand, and you’re just crazy about your stories, that’s all, so just start writing them down instead of telling the other kids about them.” Needless to say, I couldn’t stop writing after that.
Today, I’m so blessed and grateful to have readers, followers, and a small-but-growing fan base. Periodically, I would receive emails from aspiring writers from around the world expressing general comments and questions about getting started and copyright protection.
If you’re a budding writer and would like to know more about getting a literary agent, proper novel manuscript format, writing great query letters, or just general questions about protecting your material with the Copyright Office, here are a couple Links that could be helpful:
1. US Copyright Office (https://www.copyright.gov/registration/)
2. Writers Guild of America, East (https://www.wgaeast.org)
Lastly, it might be hard to believe, but it’s actually true that getting started on any or whatever your goals and dreams are can simply start by getting your library card, simple but actually true. – Randolph Randy Camp
More at https://www.amazon.com/author/randolphcamp
Have you ever met a kid with so much drive, potential, and natural talent but they always had to put their goals and dreams momentarily aside because ‘life happens’? Time after time, this has been the story in Tommy’s life.
My daughter Tasha has three sons, Anthony, Tyler, and Tommy. As some of you already know, Anthony was fatally shot just three weeks ago. Tommy is the oldest. Can you imagine being barely over twenty and giving the eulogy at your younger brother’s funeral, and then, only a few days later, you find out that your other younger brother is now in jail. How much can a young man take? Time after time, Tommy gets punched but keeps driving.
Tommy is all grown up now, but it seems as though Tommy’s childhood has been filled with unimaginable heartaches and numerous sacrifices, whereby he’s been forced to grow up fast and become a man way ahead of time. Ironically though, it’s these unfortunate events in Tommy’s young life that have catapulted him into the strong, tenacious gentleman he is today.
Tommy loves his family, and throughout his young life he has always put his own dreams and goals on the back burner whenever his mother or younger brothers needed him.
A few years ago, when his mother was hospitalized, Tommy was there stepping up to the plate. At a young age, many times over, Tommy has stepped up and became the man of the house. It’s a role that seemingly comes naturally to Tommy. He is absolutely a remarkable, driven young man.
Ever since he was little, Tommy has always loved music. Tommy is a musical prodigy. Tommy can play the piano, bass guitar, rhythm guitar, and drums. And what I especially love about Tommy’s musical taste is that, in spite of his young age, he still has a desire and love for old school retro soul and jazz. Bands and artists such as ‘Earth, Wind and Fire’ and bassist Stanley Clarke are high on Tommy’s playlist. The first time I heard my grandson Tommy play his rendition of Stanley Clarke’s ‘Rocks, Pebbles and Sand’, I was just blown away! Tommy has a natural ear for music, and I do believe that one day the world will readily know a few of his original songs.
After giving such a graceful and down-to-earth eulogy at his brother Anthony’s funeral, Tommy’s grief was interrupted and he had to shift gears and step up to the plate once again as he learned of his brother Tyler’s untimely incarceration.
The emotional and financial strain and stress of covering Anthony’s recent funeral and burial expenses have definitely taken its toll on the family. And now, as lightning has struck twice so quickly, Tommy has stepped up and created a fundraising campaign to raise enough money for his brother Tyler’s attorney fee. You see, Tommy will become an uncle soon, to his brother Tyler’s first child sometime in the next few weeks, in mid-August. And big brother Tommy is trying his best to raise these funds so that his brother Tyler could be released soon and able to see his baby’s birth.
Tommy has done a lot for his family already, so many sacrifices he has made. This time, let’s take some of the weight and financial burden off of Tommy’s shoulders. Let’s tell Tommy that this time he’s not alone in this battle by giving whatever you can to support his fundraising campaign.
I always believe that when you do positive things, people will support you and your positive efforts. Please join me in helping Tommy’s Drive to free his brother Tyler. Please CLICK the following Link if you would like to contribute or learn more about Tommy’s brother Tyler (https://www.gofundme.com/f/freetylersummage)
Any amount you give would be greatly appreciated, and God Bless you all for helping Tommy’s Drive.
– (Grandpa) Randolph Randy Camp
*(Photo: Tommy Summage, Jr.)
Due to the senseless, recent death of my grandson in New York it gave me a renewed appreciation for positive-minded kids, and got me thinking a lot about all of the positive kids out there who are doing their own thing and have no desire whatsoever to join a street gang.
Over the years as a youth advocate, I’d spoken with lots of lost kids who were at the crossroads, where they’re not sure if they want to join their neighborhood gang or not. When I was in Los Angeles in 2002, I remember having a one-on-one session with this big, muscular, tat-covered 15 year-old who got really upset with me because I’d told him that it was a sign of weakness to join a gang because it means that you’re too afraid to walk alone.
I could see his face tighten as he thought that I was insulting him by calling him ‘weak’, but I went on to tell him that when you don’t need a gun or a group of others dressed in similar clothing around you to make you “feel like a man” then you’re already on a good path towards manhood. As he got up in protest to walk out the door I further told him that it takes more courage to walk alone than to join a gang. He rolled his eyes and slammed the door as he left.
About a year later in 2003, this same big, thuggish-looking kid was one of many kids along the 26-mile route, cheering me on as I ran the LA Marathon to raise money for the I Have A Dream Foundation – LA Chapter. After I’d crossed the finish line, he excitedly told me that he’d re-enrolled back into school and he’d promised his mom that he wouldn’t ever join a gang. *(Update: Today, this gentleman is now a certified auto mechanic, married with 2 kids, and a homeowner in San Diego. He keeps in touch with me and calls me ‘pops’)
If any of you have friends and family who are currently dealing with a younger family member who maybe associated with a street gang, or maybe possibly at the crossroads, please try, in your own unique way, to get the message across to him or her that joining a gang is a sign of weakness, and that true strength and true courage happens when you do your own thing and you’re not afraid to walk alone.
After building up a bit of trust, some kids will be willing to listen but most will not. As a youth advocate, I’ve learned that you can’t change the mindset of a kid, only they can do that, but what you can do though is plant positive seeds into their heads and simply show by example how you’re living your life.
If a troubled kid is willing to listen, I try to explain to them that gang leaders love to recruit school dropouts because they’re easier to control, brainwash and manipulate because their minds are somewhat empty and they can’t think for themselves. That’s why I always encourage kids in gang-infested neighborhoods to stay in school and please don’t quit. Also, I remember trying to tell another kid that joining a gang will ‘limit you’ because gangs only associate themselves with one or two colors, and they only associate themselves with a certain street or two, or possibly a small section of town. Whereby, in contrast, those who walk alone associate themselves with all colors of the rainbow and they have the whole world, not just a limited area around the block.
Walking alone isn’t easy, but at least you know that the whole world is yours. – Randolph Randy Camp
