Senior Moments:
Writing at 65 and Beyond
by Roy Swanberg

I was watching a Cross Country meet when my attention was drawn to the late runners back in the pack working hard to stay in the race. Rubbery legs, shoulders bent, head off to one side and frothing at the mouth like an exhausted steed, yet they had no desire to quit, they kept running. Only with internal determination and encouragement from onlookers they kept going to their only reward—a little left over applause as they came through the chute.

That struggling scene drew me into it as I thought of another race I'm in. At 69, leaning hard on 70, I'm only in my fourth year of writing.

Why Did I Start?

After retiring from teaching, and with the time to devote to this race, I had a burning desire not to let the words and messages of our great hymns get lost in some of the new contemporary music of the church. I wrote essays and interpretations of several of the great traditional hymns. I added some stories from a lifetime of experiences and some of the funny and strange things that go on in my part time job as a charter and tour bus driver. A heart attack, nearly four years ago, set aside the time for a complete book to bleed from my heart.

Why Do I Keep Running?

When I'm at writers' conferences, I meet writers from all generations. I hear remarks like, "In my thirty years I've sold hundreds of articles and five books." "Seventeen years ago when I started this series..." I hear the young writers, fresh out of lofty journalistic schools and middle age authors tell of their hopes, dreams and successes—they keep coming.

On the other hand I also hear, "Keep writing, Roy, They don't have the stories and experiences that come from 69 years on the trail." I ask the question, what business do I have in this race? When I hear the cheering and encouragement of my wife, children, friends and mentors along the sidelines, I keep running. One of my mentors in a writers guild actually was honest enough to say, "Write hard Roy, your time is short."

Teach Old Dog New Tricks?

Today, I'm the old dog learning new tricks. Learning to be patient. Editors, agents and publishers aren't exactly taking numbers to line up on my porch. I've learned the competition is brutal in this business and as a new comer in this race at my age, it's worse. I learn new techniques, read new books, go to conferences, relearn Jr. high punctuation and wrestle with the computer; no one taught me that in school. Write, rewrite, cut, tighten, edit, rewrite and polish the work.

I've learned to keep running, keep writing and not to panic just because of my age. I have completed the Journeyman level in a writers guild, read over a dozen books on writing, countless magazine articles, had three articles published and two publishers ask to see my book manuscript and yet I feel like a late runner in that Cross Country meet. Most of all I've learned to live off the encouragement of my wife, family, friends and mentors.

Will I Win a Prize?

At this point it doesn't matter. It would be nice of course, but I've finally realized, "Only what is done for Christ will last." If my articles help anyone or my books lead one or some to the Lord—that's payday enough for me. It's one thing to type these words onto a cold screen, another to really mean them.

At long last, it's coming clear to me, "But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." (Isaiah 40:31, KJV) "They" will keep creating, thinking, writing, editing and telling their stories at 57, 68, 73 and beyond. "They" are the only ones who can.