Daily Inspiration: Meet Dave Volpe

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dave Volpe.

Hi Dave, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in Northeast Philadelphia—a unique slice of the city. Chances are you’ve never met someone from the Northeast because we scarcely leave. It’s a blue collar neighborhood home to people with hands as smooth as 40 grit sandpaper. Red-brick row-houses arranged like a maze, My parents still live there, my sister too but in a neighborhood a rock toss away. There’s Wawa, where 5am Union guys line up for their cigarettes and coffee. Twenty-four hour diners with single moms working the graveyard, nine-to-fivers sitting in rush hour traffic; blood pressure through the roof, dive-bars that don’t have regulars but lifers, and dope needles scatter around the basketball courts beside the playgrounds where they hold the AA meetings inside the rec center.
Life could be summed up from generation to generation with a popular phrase you’ll hear back there, “Same shit, different toilet.” When you’re born, there’s a few proven paths set out: get through high school, join a labor union, go into the military, get addicted to heroin, or try something else. So I tried something else. Went to college at Penn State, came back to Philly, worked, watched a bunch of my friends get hooked on drugs and die and thought, yeah, I think I’m done here. It was time to take a leap, yank my roots from Philly and plant myself somewhere new. So I got on a plane one day with one bag and moved to Venice Beach. That was seven years ago.
I’ve always had a passion for stories— my earliest memories involve my mother reading books to me before bed, then myself reading under the covers with a flashlight as a kid, writing in blank notebooks as a teen because I was anxious and shy and it was the only way I could cope with all those tangled emotions. But it’s not exactly a popular hobby to scream from the rooftops back home. So I kept it as a guilty pleasure behind closed doors. I was decent at most sports, a boxer in college, went from this job to that, but nothing felt like it did when I was reading and writing. And after you watch your parents work their way out of project housing to set you up with a better life, everybody around you struggling to get by, I felt I owed it to my folks and myself to do something that makes me happy instead of following a beaten path, walking a slow road to regret.
Forging a path of your own, on your own ain’t easy, but that’s what living’s about. Proving to yourself that anything is possible with a little bit of hard ass work and a shit-ton of perseverance. I’ve just released my third book, in the middle of writing two others. To survive, I bartend at House of Billiards in Sherman Oaks. I can pay rent, feed myself, and write on the side. I wake up each morning grateful for the air in my lungs, an incredible woman who loves me, and legs that can walk. I’m thirty-three now, still in the first third of my life (assuming I stay healthy and don’t get smoked by a bus crossing the street in the meantime), and there’s still a long road in front of me. So much to learn. So much to do. So much to see. And I like the thought of that.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Compared to some truly unfortunate people out there, yes—I’m able bodied, brain’s solid, born to morally good people for parents. But no, no such thing as a smooth road if you weren’t born with a silver spoon up in an ivory tower. So every day, I try to smooth out my own road best I can but there’s always bumps. You grow up fast where I’m from, a good and bad thing. How your life turns out depends on the choices you make, and the consequences that follow.
I happened to also learn about the delicacy of life from a young age—first person I considered a friend died the same year I met her when I was five (what my most recent book is about, sorry for the spoiler). Then I was nineteen, my best friend since first grade, a brother to me died. That’s what sparked the decision to begin writing again.
Over the years, I’ve lost more friends and family along the way. Dealt with broken bones, severe sickness, working multiple jobs to make ends meet, and I’m blind in one eye. Moving across the country without a job, friends, a cushioned savings account, or family isn’t easy either. So just learning how to stay above water mentally, live responsibly and healthy day-to-day has been a priority. Reminding myself not to sweat the small stuff and to appreciate the little things helps navigate most of these bumps in the road. Life for anybody who doesn’t have a million dollar trust fund as a parachute is a challenge and our struggles are unique to all of us. But I welcome that. I wouldn’t change a thing. And like any good story, adversity builds character. Plus, at the end of the day, like they always say, it can always be worse. So all-in-all, life’s good.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I write prose; books, short stories, both fiction and creative-nonfiction. I also do woodworking and dabble in a handful of other things. As far as my writing goes, I not sure I’m “known” for anything because I’m a pretty unknown writer in a sea of extraordinary authors. But from my feedback, I hear that writing is authentic, funny, heartfelt, and it doesn’t bore people. Which is nice.
I think I’m most proud of my first book because I set out at twenty-two to write one and I actually did it. That put some wind in my sails, knowing that if I keep doing it, I’ll get better, it’ll get easier. It made me realize that whether it ends up paying the bills one day or not, I’ll do it until I’m dead because I’m in love with it.
Recently, I’ve felt good about my newest release: My Little Friend Rachel. It was originally published by SamFiftyFour Literary, then when I got the rights back, I put it out as a stand alone story and the feedback I’ve gotten has been positive, which is great to hear. I appreciate that people loved it and it resonated with them on a deep level. As someone who sets out with an intention to connect emotionally with words, that’s all I can ask for. And I think the length of the book (only 40 pages), helps keep readers engaged.
What sets me apart from other writers in my opinion, is that I have a unique style, and I’m from an area that doesn’t produce many writers (if any), so my perspective comes from a different angle. It’s hard to say what sets someone apart in terms of perspective, because nobody’s art is the same. It comes from different people who all grew up with experiences unique to them, coupled with their own psychologies, traumas, and belief systems. Though I will say, I don’t care to follow trends or pander to anyone. I write honestly, from the heart, and I think that translates through my work.
Currently, I’m working on a novel. A historical-fiction crime-drama set in SoCal during prohibition. It’s based on a true story and I’m excited for this one. So look out for that soon.

What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
To believe in yourself.
As corny as it sounds and as hard as it is to do sometimes when the cards don’t fall your way, you really can do anything you put your mind to. But that’s the trick, committing your mind to something means dedication, discipline, sacrifice, compromise, and admitting you don’t know everything and never will. Whether that means living healthier, being a better parent, partner, or something as simple as getting up to face the day if you’re going through a mental battle.
For me, understanding that I’m constantly in a state of evolution and adaptation as a person keeps me curious and self-aware— learning to let go of things out of my control, taking action on the things within my power to. Striving to be a better version of myself, not only for myself, but for my children one day.
But the most important lesson of all? Take time for the priceless moments. Call/visit a loved one, lose a little sleep staying up late with a friend to laugh and bullshit about nothing important, watch a sunset from somewhere with a view, throw on a song and dance with your spouse in the kitchen as the sauce is simmering. Never know when your number’s up and those types of moments are the ones we remember most.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: davidavolpe
• Other: https://a.co/d/dvtXiaU