# #2: How to Achieve Your Lifelong Dream of Becoming an Author After Age 60

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/perennial-pen-what-matters-most-a-silver-maple-strategies-podcast-with-nate-birt-7833224/2-how-to-achieve-your-lifelong-dream-of-becoming-an-author-after-age-60
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/perennial-pen-what-matters-most-a-silver-maple-strategies-podcast-with-nate-birt-7833224/2-how-to-achieve-your-lifelong-dream-of-becoming-an-author-after-age-60.md
Podcast: [Perennial Pen (What Matters Most): A Silver Maple Strategies Podcast with Nate Birt](https://stenobird.com/podcast/perennial-pen-what-matters-most-a-silver-maple-strategies-podcast-with-nate-birt-7833224)
Published: 2026-05-25T11:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://2570ab7b-bc69-46ef-85e7-1fcaa2ab09bb.libsyn.com/2-how-to-achieve-your-lifelong-dream-of-becoming-an-author-after-age-60
Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/2570ab7b-bc69-46ef-85e7-1fcaa2ab09bb/02_Mace_from_Missouri_-_Perennial_Pen_MST_260519.mp3?dest-id=5372295
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Duration seconds: 2240

## Resource

What happens when a childhood dream waits quietly for decades—and then finally gets its chance? In this episode, I talk with Mace from Missouri about writing, history, friendship, and the long road between wanting to do something meaningful as an author and finally beginning the journey. Mace grew up on a small farm in northeast Kansas, spent much of his career telling the stories of farm families and rural America, and later turned a sixth-grade dream of becoming an author into a new chapter of life after 60. We talk about the spark behind his historical fiction, the real-life people and places that inspired his books, and why stories from the past still have something to teach us today. Along the way, Mace shares a remarkable moment at a cemetery, the importance of friendship in shaping his work, and the simple but difficult truth that getting started is often the hardest part. In this episode, we explore: The childhood dreams we carry with us for years Why getting started can be the hardest step How history helps us understand conviction, friendship, and human struggle The role of rural life and farm families in Mace's storytelling Why good characters sometimes begin to "tell" a writer where the story should go The power of friendship to support the work we are called to do Reflection question: What is something you've wanted to do since childhood that might still be waiting for your attention? If you or someone you know has a meaningful, life-affirming story to share on Perennial Pen , email me at nate@silvermaplestrategies.com . I reply to every message personally! Resources mentioned on this episode Mace Thornton's author site: https://www.macethornton.com/ Book Links The Ghosts of Gumbo Flats https://www.macethornton.com/the-ghosts-of-gumbo-flats Freedman Kansas…

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