Writing A Book! Any Stories, Anecdotes, General Info, Etc. ?
Topic 34302 | Page 1
Being an outsider, you need to immerse yourself into trucking as a lifestyle. The best stories are written by people who have been "on the inside" for a while. In this respect check out actual experiences such as John McPhee's books such as Coming into the Country, Looking for a Ship and especially Uncommon Carriers (a bit dated, 2006)
As well as the reality shows listed here: Top 5 Reality TV shows
And for the best individual insights in the Trucking Truth forums, look for posts by Old School.
P&D:
Pickup & Delivery
Local drivers that stay around their area, usually within 100 mile radius of a terminal, picking up and delivering loads.
LTL (Less Than Truckload) carriers for instance will have Linehaul drivers and P&D drivers. The P&D drivers will deliver loads locally from the terminal and pick up loads returning to the terminal. Linehaul drivers will then run truckloads from terminal to terminal.
Fm:
Dispatcher, Fleet Manager, Driver Manager
The primary person a driver communicates with at his/her company. A dispatcher can play many roles, depending on the company's structure. Dispatchers may assign freight, file requests for home time, relay messages between the driver and management, inform customer service of any delays, change appointment times, and report information to the load planners.
Check out my Youtube channel. I have playlists with tons of info about winter driving, lifestyle change, women in trucking, stupud stuff we deal with.
And i am a published novelist! Check out my books on amazon under Rhoda D'Ettore. Good luck
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Hello! I'm a writer (and aspiring author) and for the past two months I have been inspired to write a story surrounding a character who does OTR truck driving for a living. I've been trying my best to do the proper research to understand the technicalities of this job and will continue to do so- but once I stumbled across this site and started reading from these forums, my inspiration has reached entirely new heights. Reading real trucker's stories, advice, and differing perspectives has been so rewarding and has really helped shape my idea for this character and their lifestyle. While I've learned a lot so far and will continue to read existing threads, I figured I'd post my own to see if anyone wants to add a personal story, anecdote, or really just any information they think might be helpful and/or give me deeper insight into the life of a truck driver. Quite literally ANYTHING and EVERYTHING is welcome, I've been having so much fun just digging deeper into a life I know nothing about, and would love to create something that encapsulates the experience accurately.
I have so much respect for this occupation, and the more I learn, the more that respect grows. This story is in the very beginning stages and I would love any help I can get to turn this idea into something real. My dream has always been to create something meaningful that connects with people, and I'd love to start that process by communicating directly with the people I'm writing about.
Thank you! <3
OTR:
Over The Road
OTR driving normally means you'll be hauling freight to various customers throughout your company's hauling region. It often entails being gone from home for two to three weeks at a time.
DOT:
Department Of Transportation
A department of the federal executive branch responsible for the national highways and for railroad and airline safety. It also manages Amtrak, the national railroad system, and the Coast Guard.
State and Federal DOT Officers are responsible for commercial vehicle enforcement. "The truck police" you could call them.