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Meg LaForge

trying my hand at writing books

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the wild card

I've always been terrible at this sort of thing. Writing about myself. Ideally, I would love one of my nearest and dearest friends to tackle this. However, I do most of my work in the wee hours when the world is asleep, so here we are. 

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Since I would venture to say 99% of you found your way here from my Instagram account, you know a lot about me as it is. My name is Meg - Meagan by birth. When I was 10, the movie Father of the Bride II came out. In the end, Steve Martin's character is distressed over both his wife and his daughter being in labor at the same time and comments, "The doctor is named Megan?! No Megans are doctors!"

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That was it - my name was officially one that I hated. I tried to go by my middle name in my late 20s/early 30s, but it never caught on. I struggled to respond to it; Colin never got on board. The only option was to shorten it and go by Meg, like Family Guy. I guess it suits me, who knows. What's in a name? As the brilliant Shakespeare once wrote. 

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What is essential to know? I was born in London, Ontario, Canada. If you've been, you know how much it sucks. When I was 19, I skedaddled, moving to Petawawa, Ontario, with my best friend. That started 15 years of moving so regularly that I widdled my belongings down to what would fit in my small car. I've left pieces of myself behind with every move. Petawawa, Renfrew, Kingston, Strathroy, Maple, Mimico, Costa Rica, finally settling in Trent Hills, Ontario. I don't think we'll ever leave. It's the most home I've ever felt, although I would venture to say that's more about the company than the area. 

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I spent much of my adult life figuring out what I wanted to be when I grew up. I've wanted to be an actor, doctor, psychiatrist, lawyer, soldier, cop, correctional officer, soccer player, scuba diver. Random things that caught my ADHD's attention, and lost it just as quickly. I told myself that in the interim, I would do sales. It's good money. It turns out that I really love it. I made a career of connecting with other humans and helping them solve problems in one way or another. From cell phones to cell phone manufacturers, trucking software, grant software, strategic planning software, to my current role as an Enterprise Account Executive in the alcohol industry. It's new - I'm lost. I take comfort in knowing I can sell anything, and if the fit isn't right, the next company will be blessed to land me. I would love to sit still for even a few years. It's been a whirlwind since the start of the pandemic. 

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When I think about how I landed here, creating a website to share about the progress of the book or maybe one-day books I am working on, I am transported back to being 12 years old, sitting in the musty bookshop downtown Port Carling, where I spent summers with my grandmother. Consuming mass amounts of R L Stine books and daydreaming about writing my own stories. That was the first job I ever wanted, to be an author. The universe has a pretty unreal way of bringing us full circle. 

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My debut novel, Choke, is likely far from excellent. However, I have high hopes that it will be at least entertaining. If it's not, that's okay. We all start somewhere, and pouring myself into it has been nothing short of incredible. It is an accomplishment I will be proud of until the end of my days. 

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Nothing I have done or will do in my life could be possible without the love and support of my family. Last night, my husband Colin popped his head into my office. It was nearly midnight, and I was deep in edits. He said goodnight, that he loved me, and was so proud of me for doing this. He hasn't read it - he has a general concept, but he recognizes how much of myself I've poured into this and encourages me to keep going. Choke is part one of a 2-3 (maybe) part series loosely based on us. It really is a love letter to him, even though it may not appear to be upon first review. 

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We met once upon a time in a grimy bar called GT's in London. I was in my wild girl era, he was playing Junior A (I think, I don't know much about hockey and googled to see what team he was on during that year - some hockey site tells me he was playing for the Trenton Sting). I don't remember this encounter at all, but he swears up and down that he tried to pick me up, and when I learned he was a hockey player, I blew him off, disappearing into the crowd. We met again 6 years later, and I remember that day all too well. A friend pointed him out at the gym, and I scrunched my nose. 

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"Ew." I muttered, "He's way too muscular for me."

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Shortly after, my friend introduced me to him. He was sitting on the armrest of a chair at the front of Goodlife Fitness. Those warm brown eyes met mine, he held out his massive paw, and in that oh so deep, quiet voice, he said, "I'm Colin, nice to meet you."

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I never believed in love at first sight until that moment. I never believed in sparks flying until our hands connected. I knew in that moment, right then and there, he would be mine forever. Nearly 14 years later, I had one beautiful baby boy, and I still feel that way. My life is better because of him. He is the sun after months of darkness, a glass of water in the desert. So, I guess I wrote the book as much for him as for myself. It's twisted, dark, and trouble, like we were in those first years. 

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But it's also filled with the most intense love underneath it all. A deeply obsessive love that makes you question everything. Love makes you do crazy things, desperate things. We've been wild, crazy, hopeless, and dangerous, but we've also been so tender, caring, supportive, and silly. 

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So there you have it. I don't feel the need to get into my child. He is my heart; I live and breathe because of and for him. Maybe down the line, he will arrive in my stories, and then I will share more about him. For now, know that he is the best of all the gifts I've received throughout my life. He is a treasure. A human being I am proud to know. That I can't believe I created literally with my snatch. 

 

Wild. 

 

xo

Meg
 

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