My First Novel

I've always wanted to be a writer. A fiction writer (I've been a technical writer for over 20 years, it ain't the same thing, trust me, though it does pay quite a bit better on average). Sure, saying "always" is a bit hyperbolic and overused, but it's pretty close as I first dabbled in fiction writing when I was in first or second grade when I plagiarized The Five Chinese Brothers. I loved the book so much that I started writing it out word-for-word. My brother came along and told me dutifully that what I was doing was plagiarism (did he use that word? Probably not, but he still had a pretty good handle on copyright law for only being five years older than me). I was mystified. I wasn't copying the book, I was writing it! Couldn't he see the pencil and the paper? He continued to explain and I continued to have no idea what the hell he was talking about.

Did I finish copying ... uh, writing the book? I doubt it. I'm sure I became discouraged after that and just let it go.