We are all waiting with bated breath for the July release of Insecure star, Jay Ellis’ upcoming memoir, “Did Everyone Have an Imaginary Friend (or Just Me?),” detailing the life’s journey of Ellis, his imaginary friend, and their adventures.
In a recent interview, the 42-year-old opened up about a specific childhood memory that stood out to him while he was writing his new book.
“My first love was my third grade teacher, Ms. Calloway,” the actor told People Magazine in a recent interview. “Mikey, my imaginary friend, told me to staple my hand because if I stapled my hand, then I would get to sit in the chair next to Ms. Calloway’s desk, and then I could profess my love to her and tell her why I was the man that she should be with in third grade.”
We are assuming that Mikey’s advice didn’t work out because Ellis goes on to say that the experience lead to his “… first heartbreak.” Although Mikey seems a bit naughty, he played a special role in Ellis’ life, accompanying him during his moves a a military child and during some of the hard times in the actor’s life.
Ellis goes on to say in the interview that, writing a book is actually hard, challenging, and terrifying all at the same time.
“Writing is hard. Writing is so hard. It’s very much challenging. I think as a performer, I get the words, and then I breathe life into those words, and I get to create a character. Absolutely love that, adore that. I hope I do that until the end. When you have to write it, it’s a completely different thing.
He concluded, telling the outlet that, “I think there’s a vulnerability thing, too, that I didn’t clock. I was going to have to open up in a way where it was me opening up versus me performing a character who’s opening up.”
According to imaginationplayground.com, “research shows that imaginary friends may help promote cognitive development in children, effectively improving skills such as perspective-taking, problem-solving, and social communication.”
Per the experts, imaginary friends enable children to delve into a self-made make-believe world. A child’s imaginary friend could be someone who:
- keeps your child company
- plays with your child
- listens to and supports your child
- accepts your child for who they are
- can do things that your child can’t do
- is special and belongs only to your child
“Did Everyone Have an Imaginary Friend (or Just Me?),” is available for preorder now! The memoir officially drops on July 30!
Photo: Jay Ellis Instagram; Adobe Stock Images
