Stock and Hicksy love talking to creative people (as they don't have any creativity themselves so it's sheer envy). So, talking with guest, James "Jimbo" Bell made them even more envious. Jimbo, whose latest book, "Wild Side" takes the reader into a fictional journey inside the 1970's-'80's New York City culture. As he tells Stock and Hicksy, this book is actually taken from real-life characters Andrea True ("More, More, More") and New York Yankees star, Reggie Jackson, among others.
But, before he became a prolific author, he was deep in Australia and Asia in the late 1970's and early 1980's painting homes and washing dishes until a battle with hepatitis in Calcutta radically reduced his weight. He then decided that his traveling days were over. He returned to the USA and got an advertising account rep job with the prestigious NYC firm, Ogilvy & Mather and got married.
With his wife, Heidi, and their two daughters, they moved to Charlottesville VA. for one big reason: loneliness. Chicago and NYC were too big. Jimbo soon took up writing.
He tells how his writing of aerograms to his then-girlfriend and now-wife, Heidi, inspired him to write. He advises would-be writers what he does to get his books written. (Stock and Hicksy shamelessly beg for him to write a bio about them and podcasting. Jimbo was certainly diplomatic in his response.)
So, if you've ever wanted to hear how an adventurer turned author finds inspiration in the wild edges of life and art, you won’t want to miss this episode. Jimbo Bell’s journey from Calcutta’s street kitchens to NYC’s creative scene, and finally to Virginia's peaceful hills, is both inspiring and relatable—especially for those who dream of carving their own creative path. You will enjoy this deep dive with Jimbo into the art of storytelling, the value of taking risks, and what it really takes to make characters and scenes come alive.
