Introduction - DOWNLOAD "DRIBBLE"

The idea for "Dribble" originally came about because I wanted to write about what it is like to be teenagers in the Midwest of today. I started by creating the flawed hero of the piece, J.J. Jones. J.J. desperately wants to make his high school's varsity basketball team and someday attend college. J.J. is not the most gifted basketball player in his high school so he has to work hard to improve his game skills. Yet, his life does not revolve around basketball. J.J. works at his father's sporting goods store and has interests in art and driving his motorcycle at high rates of speed. He also likes hanging out with his teen-aged friends, Martin, Marion and Joe.

I came up with Brenda Lee, a Chinese American teenager, as J.J.'s love interest. She is originally from an Asian country, possibly China. I haven't quite made up my mind if she is from China or an Asian country with a large Chinese population. Anyway, she is caught between two cultures. She wants to be like her American classmates in high school but her teen-aged brother, Bobby, and her parents wants her to remain true to her heritage.

Naturally, J.J. and Bobby develop a rivalry on and off the basketball court. The pivotal scene in "Dribble" is a motorcycle chase between J.J. and Bobby. I came up with the scene after watching a group of motorcycles race past me on I-71 near Columbus, Ohio. In the aftermath of the motorcycle chase J.J. smokes out of town disgusted and fearful of his actions' impact on his dreams of college and a life away from his hometown. Later, J.J. returns to town and attempts to repair his relationships with his friends, and more importantly, Brenda.