I ran in college. As exercise. Well, really as anorexic over-exercise. I never liked it. I hated it in fact.

Over the years I would try running now and again and realize I still hated it. Really hated it. I swore I would never run.

Then my older child started running, and I started running so that we could run together. Then I kept running. I now run at least a couple times a week, and I have two friends I run with most of those times. They’re both way stronger runners than I am. In fact, I refer to them as runners, and me, well I only admit that I run. I’m not a runner; I run with my friends who are runners. No surprise, they correct me. They tell me I am a runner.

Last Wednesday was my (first of many I hope) author event. It was a wonderful event put on by Daralyse Lyons, the transformational storyteller, who has written twenty (yes twenty) books. The event also featured two really cool authors, Helen W. Mallon and Heidi Doheny Jay. You MUST check out their work! Heidi interviewed over 400 men and shares their perspectives on sex and relationships. Helen writes fiction that reflects true life – to talk about the things that we can’t talk about, and you can download her short stories, free of charge, on any device through True Courage Books. These authors are all fascinating and inspiring to listen to…and read.

The first question from Daralyse, “Why are you a writer?” I believe I answered third. My answer? “I don’t see myself as a writer; I just wrote a book.” (Well technically two books. I’ve published a book for work – The Power of Thoughtful Leadership – that is a compilation of posts from my Thoughtful Leaders blog. And most of those I write.)

So I run but I’m not a runner, and I’ve written two books and I’m not a writer. Funny huh? At least I’m honest about the weirdness in my brain.

The other funny thing about my writing and my memoir? I’m the first to tell you that I don’t have many memories from my childhood. I often ask my brother, “What happened then?”

All that aside, my (hopefully first of many) author event was Wednesday, and it was tons of fun. I used my spectacular line, “the best seats I ever had at Madison Square Garden were at my mother’s wedding, and the best cocaine I ever had was from my father’s friend the judge.” I told the great story about getting lost in Greenwich Village when I was about eight and I refused to cross against the light at 8th Street and 6th Avenue. (Ask my brother how old I was. He’ll remember.) And about how when I finally found Broome Street Bar where my dad, Danny, was bartending, there was a strange bald-headed man behind the bar instead of Danny. (It was Danny. He shaved his head one night while drunk.) And about how a few months later he showed up at my school play with a bald head, a top hat, a tooth-gap in his mouth because he’d lost a tooth in a bar fight, and a tooth earring hanging from his ear because he’d made the tooth into an earring.

At the end of the night someone said to me, “I can’t wait to read your book. It sounds hilarious.” I’d never thought of it that way.

I also (huge smile) had numerous other people tell me they couldn’t wait to read To the Moon and Back and two people who bought The Power of Thoughtful Leadership and asked me to autograph it for them.

It was a really, really fun night. And maybe I am a writer. I’m soon to be a (twice) published author.

PS – Dara is hosting another Storytelling and the Stage event on May 3. It should be at least as amazing!

I’d love to hear your thoughts, and please share this post with others if it resonates with you!