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A Trip To Pep Boys

By Tom Di Roma

Born 1947, M, from Oceanside, United States

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A Trip To Pep Boys
I never thought a trip to Pep Boys for an oil change could affect my life the way it did.
I was sitting in the wait area when someone I hadn’t been aware of before sat down next to me. At first, I didn’t even bother looking up until I heard a pleasant-sounding female voice ask, “You’re a writer?” I’d been reading the latest issue of the Writer’s Digest magazine.
That’s when I did look up and my heart skipped a beat. She was amazing-looking. Her hair, long and straight was the color of mahogany, her eyes were a bright emerald, green, and her face, all sharp angles, was a mixture of what seemed to be Hispanic and Asian heritages. Even sitting down, I could tell she had a toned body.
Once I found my voice, I said to her, “I’m trying to be.”
“What do you mean trying?”
“I just started a little while ago.”
“So, what are you writing?”
“Mostly Sci-Fi short stories.”
Her eyes lit up and she dug into her purse, pulling out a business card. As she handed it to me, she explained, “I work for Out-There Magazine. We just started. I’d like to take a look at one of your stories.” Excitement shot through my body as I glanced at her card. It said she was a junior editor at Out-There. Her name was Karen Orr.
I was about to ask her some questions when they called her about her car. I watched as she paid her bill and retrieved her keys. On the way out she said to me, “Don’t forget to send me one of your stories.” Then she left, carrying the coffee she had gotten from the McDonald’s on the other side of the parking lot.
That’s when I looked at her card again. I wondered which one of my stories I could send. I only had three so far, two of which, I had completed and sent to other magazines.
When I got home, I dug into finishing the third. It was a Saturday. Then using the email on her card, I sent it to her.
Four agonizing days later, I got an email from her with suggestions for edits. As you might guess, I wasn’t happy with her suggestions. It took me a long time to decide if I wanted to make them. Eventually, I made the changes and sent the revised version to her.
Two weeks went by before I heard from her again. Talk about ecstatic! I was dancing around my apartment. The magazine was going to publish my story! To thank her, I took her out to dinner.
Now, before you get the wrong idea, Karen Orr became my editor, not my girlfriend or wife, but with her help, my career as an author took off. I stopped being a Barista and became a full-time writer.
And all because I took a trip to Pep Boys for an oil change.

A Trip To Pep Boys(Tom Di Roma) A Trip To Pep Boys
I never thought a trip to Pep Boys for an oil change could affect my life the way it did.
I was sitting in the wait area when someone I hadn’t been aware of before sat down next to me. At first, I didn’t even bother looking up until I heard a pleasant-sounding female voice ask, “You’re a writer?” I’d been reading the latest issue of the Writer’s Digest magazine.
That’s when I did look up and my heart skipped a beat. She was amazing-looking. Her hair, long and straight was the color of mahogany, her eyes were a bright emerald, green, and her face, all sharp angles, was a mixture of what seemed to be Hispanic and Asian heritages. Even sitting down, I could tell she had a toned body.
Once I found my voice, I said to her, “I’m trying to be.”
“What do you mean trying?”
“I just started a little while ago.”
“So, what are you writing?”
“Mostly Sci-Fi short stories.”
Her eyes lit up and she dug into her purse, pulling out a business card. As she handed it to me, she explained, “I work for Out-There Magazine. We just started. I’d like to take a look at one of your stories.” Excitement shot through my body as I glanced at her card. It said she was a junior editor at Out-There. Her name was Karen Orr.
I was about to ask her some questions when they called her about her car. I watched as she paid her bill and retrieved her keys. On the way out she said to me, “Don’t forget to send me one of your stories.” Then she left, carrying the coffee she had gotten from the McDonald’s on the other side of the parking lot.
That’s when I looked at her card again. I wondered which one of my stories I could send. I only had three so far, two of which, I had completed and sent to other magazines.
When I got home, I dug into finishing the third. It was a Saturday. Then using the email on her card, I sent it to her.
Four agonizing days later, I got an email from her with suggestions for edits. As you might guess, I wasn’t happy with her suggestions. It took me a long time to decide if I wanted to make them. Eventually, I made the changes and sent the revised version to her.
Two weeks went by before I heard from her again. Talk about ecstatic! I was dancing around my apartment. The magazine was going to publish my story! To thank her, I took her out to dinner.
Now, before you get the wrong idea, Karen Orr became my editor, not my girlfriend or wife, but with her help, my career as an author took off. I stopped being a Barista and became a full-time writer.
And all because I took a trip to Pep Boys for an oil change.

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COMMENTS (1)

Marla

06/21/2025

I like the way you wrote this. The story is told very naturally and with a good flow, and it makes for easy and enjoyable reading. Thanks for sharing this!

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Congratulations !

A Trip To Pep Boys

COMMENTS (1)

Marla