Suzanne's Mom's Blog

Photo: Gary Middendorf / Daily Southtown
Maintenance worker Rikk Dunlap talks about the moment his agent told him his novel was being made into a Hallmark Channel Christmas movie.

Don’t get me wrong. I know the dark is rising, but there are enough positive things here and there that I can’t help feeling there will always be room for light. As 16th century poet Robert Southwell said about the wheel of fortune, “Times go by turns and chances change by course,/ From foul to fair, from better hap to worse.”

So although I can’t believe in oversimplified, feel-good movies, the story of the guy who is behind this one has the ring of truth. He really did have dark challenges, and he really did use writing to bring light into his life.

Donna Vickroy reported at the Daily Southtown via the Chicago Tribune, “Rikk Dunlap calls it ‘uplift-erature.’ The term, referring to stories that leave a person feeling good, has become his mantra, his guide and his ticket onto the Hallmark Channel.

“It may seem odd that a man who’s seen the dark side of life, having endured alcoholism and recovery and the loss of his job at age 56, would strive to produce work that lets in the light. But it works for him. And, now he knows for sure, it’s working for others. Dunlap’s yet-to-be published novel, ‘The Christmas Tree Lot,’ was recently made into a movie, renamed ‘Christmas Under the Stars,’ by the Hallmark Channel. …

“Though Dunlap, a 57-year-old maintenance worker at Homewood-Flossmoor (H-F) High School, has only seen a two-minute promotional clip from the film, he said seeing his characters brought to life ‘is fascinating.’ …

“Dunlap, who’s lived in Park Forest since he was in fifth grade, says the underlying premise for his story was a simple one — that each of us has something to learn as well as something to give.

“It was a south suburban holiday tradition, the annual Christmas tree popup shop on Sauk Trail in Richton Park, that inspired Dunlap. … When he worked downtown, Dunlap said, he’d pass the lot twice a day. The trailer would show up some time in November, along with the tent and the trees. …

“ ‘My story starts with an investment broker, Nick (Jesse Metcalfe), who squanders some money and loses his job because of it. He happens to meet Clem (Clarke Peters), this old man who runs the Christmas tree lot,’ he said. Working with Clem, Nick learns as much about people — their dreams, their struggles, their imperfections — as he does himself. …

‘I want somebody like Clem in my life. I want this wise older man who can teach me even at my age. I think it’s important for older men and women to pass things down to boys and girls. Some of us have never had that. ..

” ‘At the time I wrote this, I had lost my job after 37 years with an engineering firm. … So here I was at 56, wondering what am I going to do with my life,’ he said. He took a year off to write. Twenty-eight years ago, while in recovery, he found writing. ‘I started using writing as a way to deal with issues coming up.’ …

“Today, as a member of the H-F maintenance crew, he mostly works indoors handling plumbing and electrical issues but pitches in to help line the field or perform other duties when needed. He also shares his experiences through motivational speeches, particularly to high school audiences. …

“ ‘High school is really tough sometimes and, depending on your background and your family and such, we don’t always have the tools to deal with it.’

“He tries to write daily. When he skips, he finds himself becoming irritable and agitated. [So] I pick up a pencil. Even if I just write notes or ideas, it has a calming effect. …

” ‘It can be a really hard world we live in. When somebody reads one of my novels I want them to walk away feeling good,’ he said.” More here.

I can identify with that “calming effect.” Although gifted writers are supposed to be tortured, I can testify that putting together little posts in a quiet corner of the internet every day can have a calming effect on ordinary writers.