Writers Tricks of the Trade ISSUE 1, VOLUME 9 | Page 6

M ORGAN ’ S C ORNER
M ORGAN S T . J AMES , E DITOR
I was the speaker for a meeting of the Stirling Club Marketing Networking Group here in Las
Vegas on March 20. They are a wonderful group of energetic, savvy people from many business
types. My topic was “My Journey to Becoming a Writer.” I knew I had to start at the beginning, be-
cause the wonderful gifts of positive thinking and attitude combined with belief in myself and my
abilities are the gift given to me by my mother Rosetta. They carved the path I traveled in life. So,
Morgan’s Corner is different in this issue than my normal format.
I
t wasn’t easy for me to find my passion,
because I was fortunate enough to pos-
sess the ability to do lots of things well.
F INDING M Y P ASSION
I spent my twenties as a secretary, ad-
ministrative assistant and office manager.
Things I was good at, but it was a 9 to 5 job,
not a passion. However I did work in a vari-
ety of companies including a theatrical
business manager in Beverly Hills, four
large aerospace industry companies where
I got Secret clearances, and a law firm that
could have been the model for the old TV
show LA Law. I also worked for the former
Executive Director of Century City, Califor-
nia—the man who negotiated the deal to
buy the land from Twentieth Century Fox.
That isn’t everything, but when I write I’m
able to draw first-hand information and
knowledge from many business experienc-
es.
When I was thirty-one, my then-
husband was a wholesale furniture manu-
facturer’s representative and I discovered
interior design. I was good at it and before I
knew it I was asked to help people with
their interiors. My sister-in-law, Carol
S PRING 2019
LeVeque, was an interior designer and we
decided to open a design studio together,
ironically in Studio City California. Although
I’d had no formal training in interior design,
I have always wanted to do the best job in
whatever I do, so I decided to take classes
at UCLA to learn the craft.
But I was a mom with three children, a
full-time partner in a design studio, and go-
ing to school at night to study interior de-
sign. I later took a residential marketing
course and became certified as a Member of
the Institute of Residential Marketing. It
was a tough grind and I never finished my
degree in design, but I’d found my first pas-
sion. Little did I know that another passion
would soon present itself.
I’ M AN A CCIDENTAL W RITER
The final requirement in my Residen-
tial Marketing course was to write an arti-
cle pertaining to the field. Not only did I re-
ceive a top grade, but my article was chosen
for publication in the Quarterly Magazine
for the Institute of Residential Marketing.
My first publication.
Our design studio had snagged projects
for some sports celebrities and people in
P AGE 1
W RITERS ’ T RICKS OF THE T RADE