Saint John library assistant Sean Thompson was leaving work with a colleague in October 2018 when he got a call he'd been waiting for for years.

A voice on the other end of the line invited Thompson, 30, to appear on the TV game show Jeopardy!

"I got giddy," he said. "The phone call ends, I hug [department head] Daniel [Teed], scream for the City Market to hear, 'I'm going to be on Jeopardy!' then bolt out of the building, shaking."

Thompson takes a break from working at the reference desk at the Saint John Free Public Library, where he has assisted patrons, shelved books, and worked on library programs for the past 4½ years. (Julia Wright / CBC)

He was so distracted, he missed his bus home that day.

But Thompson wasn't about to miss the opportunity he'd been preparing for since he was an elementary school student in Quispamsis, competing in local trivia competitions.

"I couldn't really play a musical instrument, not really a great athlete," he said. "I tried to find my niche, my spot."

He discovered he had an innate talent for recalling facts, and loved "finding things out and demonstrating what I knew."

"I realized that If you knew the right stuff, you could be cool — or at least, respected."

When he was in Grade 9, Thompson travelled to Toronto with a team from Kennebecasis Valley High School to compete on SmartAsk!, a Canadian quiz show which ran for three seasons in the early 2000s on CBC Television.

Thompson as a 14-year-old on the set of SmartAsk!, a kid's quiz show that ran on CBC Television for several seasons in the early 2000s. (CBC Archives )

It was a formative experience for a 14-year-old trivia buff.

"It was the first time I'd been to Toronto, the first time I'd been anywhere without my parents. It was a fantastic experience."

In addition to familiarizing him with hitting a buzzer and answering questions, it also gave him a taste of how to handle stage fright.

You may end up looking foolish … but you have to be OK with that. It's just a game — and with any luck, you will have many more moments when you'll look the opposite of foolish. - Sean Thompson, Jeopardy! contestant

"Being on set, I got so anxious — and I had to figure out how to take that anxiety, compartmentalize it, and get on with the job."

While studying journalism and later history at St. Thomas University, he started taking the online contestant tests on the Jeopardy! website — at one point scoring an in-person interview for the college tournament.

While he didn't advance to final auditions that time, Thompson kept at it.

He continued to take the tests every year, even when Canadian contestants were briefly excluded from competing.

"They couldn't allow Canadians to take the online test for real, but I took it for fun, just to keep myself sharp," he said.

Thompson's colleagues at the library have shown their support for his Jeopardy! journey with swag like these custom-made buttons. (Julia Wright / CBC)

He was asked for another in-person interview in November 2017.

"I wasn't waiting with bated breath or anything," he said. "I figured if this is my time, so be it. If not, I'll try again."

The answer was a long time coming.

The fateful phone call finally came almost a year later — in late October 2018.

In terms of preparation, "I don't know if I have a technique per se," he said.

"I just try to get it in my head. I take in the information, reading it over a couple of times, then I have that sort of on file in here."

He said he also develops a broad knowledge base through reading.

"I pay attention to the news a lot and try to keep up with it."

'It's just a game'

Thompson's episode was taped in early December, but to find out exactly how well he performed, New Brunswickers will have to tune into Jeopardy! on Wednesday night.

He's the second city resident to compete on the show in recent years, following Saint John High School teacher Maryanne Lewell's 2013 appearance on the Jeopardy! Teachers Tournament.

"It was a phenomenal experience," he said. "Apart from that, I can't wait until the cheque comes in. I can say that it's at least $1,000. That's the minimum prize for third place."

Thompson will watch Wednesday's episode at his curling club, Thistle St. Andrews. (Julia Wright / CBC)

Thompson plans to watch his episode at Thistle St. Andrews Curling Club, where he skips a few nights a week.

"I'll be curling from 5:45 p.m. until 8 p.m., then getting set up to watch myself," he said.

A major lesson he's learned from his trivia journey is to be OK with giving the occasional wrong answer.

"You have to learn to both put that out of your mind and embrace it," he said.

"You may end up looking foolish … but you have to be OK with that.

"It's just a game — and with any luck, you will have many more moments when you'll look the opposite of foolish."