In November, 2001, I was sued, along with almost everyone else connected with the film version of my novel K-PAX, for plagiarizing an Argentinean movie called Man Facing Southeast (the suit was later dismissed). At about the same time, dozens of letters arrived from fans asking where the ideas for the book/film originated. Together, these developments led me to ponder how my difficult life had led me to become a writer, and how I came to write K-PAX in particular. The resulting memoir includes excerpts from unpublished work, and ends with a chapter of advice for other would-be novelists.