The Writing and Photography Blog of Kevin J Sabo

I think part of the passion I have for writing comes from reading.

I’ve always been a reader. As a youth I would routinely stay up late reading, and I read pretty much anything I could get my hands on.

By the age of thirteen I was reading Dale Brown, Tom Clancy, and Michael DiMercurio, all authors that were much more advanced for my age.

Lately my fiction of choice has been the likes of Michael Connelly or Jeffery Deaver. I find I identify with the main protagonists of each author, Harry Bosch and Lincoln Rhyme.

Bosch and Rhyme can both be used as a character study in damaged main characters. In Bosch’s case, he is a Vietnam war veteran who after his military service joined the Los Angeles Police Department. He succeeds in his job as a detective, and later a private investigator despite the shadows of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder he carries and his less than healthy coping skills.

Rhyme’s damage is more apparent. He is a genius forensic scientist and former detective who suffered an injury resulting in near complete quadriplegia. He can move a finger on his left hand, and otherwise is immobile. Yet, through a team put together by the New York Police Department, he is able to keep using his vast array of forensic knowledge to help put criminals behind bars.

Reading the adventures of both of these damaged characters helps me to realize that I can carry on, despite my own damage.

I do deal with several separate mental health diagnoses, ranging from depression to my own battle with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Borderline Personality Disorder.

Despite the damage I deal with, I have many successes in my life. I’m back in school, at age 41. I’m working, albeit not full time. I’m slowly launching a photography business of my own creation. Yes, I still struggle. Yes, I still carry the damage. However, like the two protagonists I am succeeding despite the damage.

Kevin