I think you'll find today's post of interest. I've interviewed a fellow blogger whom I would like to introduce to you. His name is Ken Goetz, (also known as Dr. Kenneth Goetz) and he's quite an interesting fellow. After reading the interview, I hope you'll check out his blog. www.https://writerken.com/.
Nancy: What was your career path before you became a writer?
Ken: My path was bizarrely complicated, yet each zigzag along the way seemed logical at the time. (It
would take long pages to describe the circumstances responsible for each twist in my path, some
of them admittedly embarrassing, so I’ll just list some key stages along the way):
Pre-law student in small South Dakota college
Weather observer with U.S. Air Force in Germany
Pre-journalism student, then pre-medical student and economics major, University of Wisconsin
Medical student (two years) and graduate student, University of Wisconsin (earned PhD)
Faculty member (+ part-time med student), University of Kansas Medical Center (earned MD)
Medical intern, Saint Luke’s Hospital of Kansas City
Head, Division of Experimental Medicine, Saint Luke’s Hospital (20 years)
Visiting Professor, University of Kuopio, Finland
Visiting Professor, University of Munich, Germany
Visiting Scientist, Institute of Aerospace Medicine, Cologne, Germany
Retired Guy who writes
Nancy: When did you start writing?
Ken: I became serious about writing while taking news writing courses at Wisconsin. Following that academic year, I worked two summers for a small daily newspaper, the first as a local reporter, the second as state editor.
Nancy: What inspired you to become a writer?
Ken: I wish I could give a concrete reason. Maybe it was because I recognized quite early that the
ability to convert my thoughts and ideas into written words that accurately described what was
going on in my head, although difficult to achieve, would be a tremendous asset in whatever
profession I chose.
Nancy: You've written a memoir. What inspired you to delve into a big project like that?
Ken: I was 13, with three younger siblings, when our mother died. Our father was killed in a car crash a few years later. My younger sister and brother have no memories of our mother and only few of our father. I wrote my childhood memoir to give them a clearer picture of our parents and of earlier family stresses.
Soon afterward, Frank McCourt’s Angela’s Ashes burst upon the scene. I saw similarities between his memoir and my story, so I began searching for a publisher. Chicago Review Press and the University of Iowa press expressed interest, but ultimately both declined to publish it. So, I self-published the book as Bending the Twig. It sold a few thousand copies, generated excellent reviews, and, most impressive to me, generated hundreds of laudatory letters.
More recently, I came to realize that I had left significant information out of that memoir, so I recently revised and expanded the manuscript, increasing the word count from 58,000 to 78,000, and changing its working title. The revised manuscript is now under review by a major New York literary agency. No feedback as yet.
Nancy: What else have you written?
Ken: As a working physician-scientist, most of my output was published in scientific journals, with
nearly all of my papers written in typically dull, passive voice, the standard of academia. (But
occasionally, just for fun, I would throw in a zinger to break the mold.) Along the way, I wrote a
couple of popular pieces, one for the Kansas City Star about a doctor who voluntarily took a
lethal dose of the South American arrow poison, curare, and survived. That article was picked
up by the Associated Press and reprinted in major newspapers around the country. Last year, a
light personal essay of mine appeared in The Christian Science Monitor.
I also wrote a novel, The Colors of Medicine. That book was inspired by echoes from my
rebellious first year of medical school. While writing the novel, I felt some glee, even catharsis,
as I forced my protagonist to wade his way through the battered trail I had blazed in Madison.
The novel also was self-published and sold only a few hundred copies. Feedback indicated that
my characters were strong, even memorable, but my plot took a few uneven twists.
Nancy: You have a blog. What prompted that?
Ken: I don’t think I’ve told you this, but your blog was the inspiration for mine. When I discovered
Writer Granny's World, I was astonished by the quality and volume of your posts. I knew my
output would not begin to approach yours, but I thought maybe a grandfather could post a small
amount of what a grandmother was putting online so effectively. So, I did a bit of sleuthing about
how to set up a blog, and I jumped right in. Your readers can find my blog at www.https://writerken.com/.
Nancy: What kind of posts do you publish on your blog?
Ken: Unlike many other bloggers, I don’t focus on a single topic, so those who follow my blog never
know what to expect next. I see my posts as being somewhat akin to a weekly newspaper column,
one in which the columnist pens a piece on whatever interests him at the moment. Nothing is off
limits. Perhaps not surprisingly, I write about classic medical research, especially if I think the subject
is of general interest. For example, I’ve reported on the first man to catheterize the human heart
(a doctor who shoved a makeshift catheter into his own heart almost a hundred years ago). I’ve
also posted the story I mentioned above, the one about the man who voluntarily took a lethal
dose of South American arrow poison, and lived. Beyond that, health in general is another
common subject, especially when the topics lead to suggestions for maintaining our wellbeing.
At times I venture into more controversial opinion pieces, such as my take on the origin of
Covid-19, the costs of higher education, and Washington politics, the latter written from the
viewpoint of a Jack Kennedy Democrat, my solid personal anchor that has not wobbled since the
1960s. But, during that time the political spectrum has shifted decidedly leftward, so, with no
movement of my own, I now find myself surprisingly aligned a bit to the right of today’s political
middle. I also occasionally dip into literature, sports, travel, and whatnot.
Finally, Nancy, I sincerely thank you for taking time to interview me and introduce me to your readers. Your blog has inspired me, and so many others.
Nancy: It's been a pleasure to learn more about you. I've found your blog posts full of variety and most interesting.
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