Column: Though we were political opposites, the late, great Joe Bell stood up for my columns from the start

A number of years ago I read a poignant Daily Pilot column by essayist Joseph Bell.

Not unusual. I was a Joe Bell fan, and Joe authored many poignant columns.

As an aside in the above-referenced article, Bell acknowledged that he’d been writing his Pilot column for nine years.

I was impressed. I knew that he’d retired from his teaching post at UC Irvine, and I appreciated his ongoing enthusiasm for writing. The copy that he produced continued to be elegant and thought-provoking.

It was nine years ago this week that I began writing this weekly post, and it’s been rewarding. Like Joe in his years-distant column, I publicly acknowledge my own love affair with writing.

Joe taught nonfiction writing at UCI for 21 years. He was also a freelance writer for decades and wrote for newspapers and magazines. He authored six nonfiction books.

He died of Parkinson’s disease in 2013 at the age of 92.

Joe and I have shared several of life’s distinctions, including careers in higher education, a passion for words and Parkinson’s.

Though we were polar opposites politically, and never actually met, I considered him a mentor. He was liberal and I conservative, but for years I followed his column because I appreciate good writing. And Joe was one heck of a good writer.

I was an administrator at Orange Coast College for 37 years and retired in 2008. I wrote my first column for the Pilot in 2009, and Joe penned his finale two years later.

I remember that a particular reader objected to one of my early shibboleths. The reader complained in a letter to the editor that I was violating journalistic standards by discussing my Christian faith. He said he’d had enough of my personal opinions.

I chose not to respond.

Not so my good friend, Joe. He defended me in his very next column.

A columnist’s raison d’etre, Joe explained, is to consider and express opinions. He made it clear that columnists and reporters operate under very different strictures. Though Bell didn’t necessarily agree with my opinions he aggressively defended them.

I was grateful for Joe’s eloquent argument. To have him in my corner meant a great deal to me.

During my nine years of writing for the Pilot I’ve produced upwards of 450 columns. Frankly, I never expected to be writing this far into senior-hood. It’s been a joy.

I wish to thank Joe for standing up for me during my first halting steps. Because of him, I continue to write.

When the Pilot solicited me for this assignment in early 2009, a year after my retirement from a fulfilling career as OCC’s director of community relations, I was interested but hesitant.

From the age of 10 I’d always wanted to be a columnist. My hero was Los Angeles Times sports columnist Jim Murray.

I issued a typewritten gazette in my Costa Mesa neighborhood when I was 11; was sports editor of the Costa Mesa High Hitching Post my sophomore and junior years; wrote for the Daily Pilot (then Globe-Herald) as a high school reporter; was op-ed page editor for my college newspaper; and sports editor of a U.S. Army newspaper.

While in college, I worked as late night copy boy for the Santa Ana Register.

I wrote and edited innumerable articles and publications during my tenure at OCC. That wasn’t journalism, per se, but the next best thing. I made many good friends in newsrooms and enjoyed conversing with them about writing.

But when the Pilot contacted me, I approached the offer with trepidation: “What the heck will I write? I’ll be out of material in three months.”

Don’t get me wrong; I wanted to do it.

After some reflection I decided to give it a try. I’d heard horror stories about writing a regular column. Journalists call it “feeding the beast.” The beast is insatiable and can overwhelm you.

Not me.

I love the challenge of coming up with 700 words every week. It’s a grand puzzle, and I can arrange my 700 words in any order I wish!

Thanks, Joe Bell, for your encouragement. You made a huge difference.

JIM CARNETT, who lives in Costa Mesa, worked for Orange Coast College for 37 years.