I meet Jodi at yearbook camp during the summer. I had such a crush on her for many years, to her great chagrin. We are still friends today. And I am SO over her. For reals. 🙂
Begin sophomore year at CVCA.
Books I Read in 1987
(3 Books/Month Average)
11 Novels (*’s)
* 1. Bored of the Rings
2. MERP Rulebook
3. Doctor Who and the Vortex Crystal
* 4. Cycle of the Werewolf
5. Ghostbusters Operations Manual
6. Wizardry Player’s Guide
7. Robot Warriors Rulebook
* 8. R: Genesis
9. AD&D Monster Manual II
* 10. R: Battle Cry
* 11. So Long, and Thanks For All the Fish
* 12. The Restaurant at the End of the Universe
* 13. Life, the Universe and Everything
14. Marvel Super Heroes Players Book
15. Marvel Super Heroes Judges Book
16. Talisman Rulebook
17. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles RPG
* 18. The Neverending Story
* 19. The Talisman
20. Maze
21. Shadowlord! Rulebook
22. They’ve Invaded Pleasantville Rulebook
23. BattleTech Rulebook
* 24. Animal Farm
* 25. DL: Dragons of Autumn Twilight
26. Robotech RPG
27. RDF Manual
28. Zork Trilogy Instructions
29. Zentraedi
30. Billy and the Boingers Bootleg
31. Calvin and Hobbes
32. Southern Cross
High School
Begin freshman year at CVCA.
Books I Read in 1986
(8 Books/Month average)
15 Novels (*’s)
* 1. Sounder
2. AD&D Monster Manual
3. AD&D Player’s Handbook
4. Bible: Book of Daniel
5. EQ: Dungeon of Dread
6. EQ: Mountain of Mirrors
7. S!: The Shamutanti Hills
8. S!: Khar’e: Cityport of Traps
9. EQ: Pillars of Pentegarn
10. CYOA: Space Attack
11. CYOA: The Abominable Snowman
12. CYOA: The Dragon’s Den
13. CYOA: War with the Evil Power
Master
14. CYOA: Search for the Mountain
Gorillas
* 15. A Guide to Star Wars
16. EQ: Return to Brookmere
17. EQ: Revolt of the Dwarves
18. EQ: Revenge of the Rainbow
Dragons
19. EQ: Creating a Database Adven-
ture Game
20. EQ: Hero of Washington Square
21. EQ: Villains of Volturnus
* 22. Han Solo at Star’s End
23. EQ: Robbers and Robots
24. EQ: Circus of Fear
25. EQ: Spell of the Winter Wizard
26. EQ: Light on Quests Mountain
* 27. DL: Dragons of Autumn Twilight
28. EQ: Dragon of Doom
29. EQ: Raid on Nightmare Castle
* 30. DL: Dragons of Winter Night
31. EQ: Under Dragon’s Wing
32. EQ: Duel of the Masters
33. EQ: Riddle of the Griffin
34. EQ: Search for the Pegasus
35. EQ: Prisoners of Pax Tharkas
36. DT: Sword Daughters Quest
37. DT: Runesword!
38. LW: Flight from the Dark
39. LW: Fire on the Water
40. LW: The Caverns of Kalte
41. LW: The Chasm of Doom
42. You’re Barking up the Wrong
Tree, Snoopy
* 43. Mostly Magic
* 44. Big Red
45. Marvel Super Heroes Battle Book
46. Marvel Super Heroes Campaign
Book
47. CYOA: Supercomputer
* 48. The Book of Three
49. Star Frontiers Basic Rules
50. Star Frontiers Expert Rules
51. SF0: Crash on Volturnus
52. SF1: Volturnus: Planet of
Mystery
* 53. The Witch of Blackbird Pond
54. EQ: Ghost Tower
55. Knight Hawks Boardgame Rules
56. Warriors of White Light
57. Zebulon’s Guide to Frontier
Space
58. Indiana Jones RPG Rules
59. AD&D Dungeon Masters Guide
60. Ghostbusters Training Manual
61. Ghostbusters Operations Manual
62. Moving Graphics: Alien Invaders
* 63. DL: Dragons of Spring Dawning
64. SF2: Starspawn of Volturnus
65. Sword & the Stars Rulebook
66. AD&D Fiend Folio
67. BattleTech Rulebook
68. The Traveller Book
69. Aslan
70. K’kree
71. Black Widow
72. Time Master Traveller’s Manual
73. Time Master Guide to the
Continuum
74. Dunzhin Rulebook
75. Fox’s Teeth
76. Red Ace High
77. AD&D Legends and Lore
78. AD&D: The Lost Island of
Castanamir
79. AeroTech Rulebook
80. Shadowlord! Rulebook
81. MH1: The Breeder Bombs
82. Marvel Super Heroes Players
Book
* 83. The Shattered World
84. Murder to Go Rulebook
85. Marvel Super Heroes Judges
Book
* 86. Decision at Thunder Rift
87. Chill Introductory Folder
88. Terror in Warwick House
* 89. A Matter for Men
90. Assault on Starship Omicron
91. War of the Ring Rulebook
* 92. A Father, A Son, and a Three
Mile Run
93. CityTech Rulebook
94. MechWarrior
* 95. A Day for Damnation
96. LW: Shadow on the Sand
He could not Recall a Time when he was not Writing
Begin 8th grade at CVCA.
I write a short story, “Welcome to the Real World, Mr. Human,” that I eventually turn into a play during my senior year.
CVCA
Begin 7th grade at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy (CVCA) in Cuyahoga Falls.
Think Different
I see a Macintosh for the first time and wonder who would ever want to use a mouse and a GUI instead of a keyboard and a text parser.
Begin 6th grade at CHCS.
I think that Matt Luker moved away to Georgia this year. I was heartbroken and was forced to re-evaluate my life.
Jedi
I see Return of the Jedi.
Begin 5th grade at CHCS.
I try selling my first computer game, “Warriors of Wargoz” to classmates. It involved a warrior of your creation fighting an endless stream of monsters. It was all text-based, of course. I sell one copy.
More Geek Seeds
Begin 3rd grade at CHCS.
I simultaneously encounter Dungeons & Dragons and Lord of the Rings.
Seeds are Sown
I see The Empire Strikes Back.
Begin 2nd grade at CHCS.
My dad brought home our first computer, the Apple II+. I started playing the interactive fiction game “Adventure” (AKA “Colossal Cave”) and my life was changed forever. I decided I wanted to create stories.