That didn’t happen.

Video link

https://youtu.be/RAv6t6hkG78

Instead, for his MFA, he began writing a memoir.

Jason Bussman

And he figured out that he had plenty of material from which to draw.

“As I started writing, the memoir came out,” Bussman said. “I have a lot of stories about my life. My parents gave me a lot of material. My kids give me a lot of material.”

“Fumble: Just a Dad Trying Not To Drop the Ball,” his memoir, was recently published, and he reflects on his experiences as a father, son, husband, and a brother. The book is a collection of 21 stand-alone essays and one poem, takes a candid approach to the ups and downs of parenting through the lens of humor that will resonate with dads, moms, and anyone who’s ever had a “fumble” in their life, he said.

“I’ve started to figure out how to get those (stories) on the paper in a way that other people can relate to them, whether or not they experience the same thing, they experienced a similar thing, that it’s a relatable moment, that I’m putting relatable moments on the page that hopefully people can laugh at or cry at,” the author noted.

He said when beginning his memoir, he realized it wasn’t the book he wanted to write. His mentor stepped in and told Bussman to “just write what’s coming out in order to get to where you want to go.”

Book cover

Then the flood gates opened, and the deluge of stories about his dad, himself, his brother, and his mother came rushing out.

“And once that wave hit, then I could get to the reflections on moments of my life as a da and all that stuff,” Bussman said.

Writing is hard work.

If you happen to meet him at a book signing, he will tell you that it is very hard work.

And Bussman is on the front lines championing the craft as he teaches writing courses at SUNY Fredonia and St. Bonaventure University.

He instills how important the writing process is, and how important grammar is. He uses small-group writing workshops in his classes, so students can develop and hone their skills.

But most importantly, as he does with his own writing, he shows students how writing can connect with their lives.

A daunting task to say the least, but Bussman loves the challenge. He said he teaches them how to find their writing voices and use their writing voices, and once they do, the atmosphere changes where words flow and dormancy ceases.

In the classroom he sees artificial intelligence as both a bane and a boon: A bane because students may tend to use AI to write their papers in which AI inhibits them to develop their voices; a boon, he said, if students use AI as a tool during the writing process. An example would be during the first step: prewriting or brainstorming. AI may help students find more words and ideas during the first step.

But fiction is always an arm’s reach away from Bussman, as he occasionally dabbles in the craft. He said in order to make fiction great, an author has to put in a lot of work.

He admitted that he does like to read historical fiction, and has a project in the works – another memoir.

Bussman has been writing since the first grade. The reaction of others to his written stories sparked his writing career. And has not slowed down since.

“My best friend and I wrote a series. It was a mash up between Chronicles of Narnia and The Hardy Boys,” Bussman admitted. “It was like a bunch of friends who, like, got together and solved crimes, and there was like a Narnia wardrobe twist in it, and it was super weird, but we had a blast writing it.”

But now, with being a dad, a son, a brother, husband, and teacher, he is busy, so he has to find the time to write.

“Whenever I can squeeze some time in. I try to write in the morning. … And I try to squeeze in some time on the weekends.”

Fumble is available on amazon.com and at book signings set for March 15 at Myers Memorial Library in Frewsburg; March 22 at Wicked Warren’s Brewery in Warren, Pa.; April 14 at Hazeltine Library in Busti; and April 19 at Wicked Warren’s in Jamestown.

For more information visit jasonkbussman.com.