Interview

Q.1.    Normally, I don’t begin with a biographical summary or review. However, your strong academic and professional credentials seem essential to understanding the quality and depth of your writing. Could encapsulate your life into a synopsis revealing your literary foundations?

Writing never came easy as a kid. Learning the ropes was torture. I struggled with the mechanics of grammar and punctuation, and my sentences or essays were horrifying. Papers returned by my teachers were always filled with red ink, circling my mistakes: sentences that didn’t make sense, mismatched tenses, missing verbs, and the same words used over and over.

I took my bumps and bruises throughout my schooling but never gave up. Without proper writing skills, I knew I wouldn’t amount to much in life. I reworked all my essays and dutifully resubmitted them. Eventually, to the jeers and mockery of my classmates, I built the nerve to ask for extra help when I didn’t understand an assignment. Those in charge noted my efforts. My pals poked fun when I was awarded “the most improved writer.”

College brought myriad opportunities to study writing, from journalism and creative writing to comparative literature and public relations. My written work received a new level of criticism from noted scholars, philosophers, public servants, and authors. I was unprepared for the volley of withering reviews. Some were favorable; many were not. Still, I stood my ground as always and went full throttle, visiting professors, reworking my documents, and resubmitting my work. Although writing had become more challenging and the coursework more demanding, I wasn’t going to let criticism cripple me with self-doubt.

Looking back, I remember one professor having a plaque by his door with a quote from Norman Vincent Peale: “The trouble with most of us is that we would rather be ruined by praise than saved by criticism.” I’ve never forgotten that quote.

In addition to my passion for writing, I became interested in the behavioral sciences. I always wanted to understand why people acted the way they did and believed that the more we understood, the more we could help improve the lives of those around us. My interest in counseling and psychology eventually led to two graduate degrees and a teaching position at Mitchell College, a small liberal arts institution in New London, Connecticut.

What happened to this guy’s passion for writing; did he walk away?

Then, one day, in a stunning twist of fate, fellow psychology professor Don Helms and I were lamenting our inability to find a suitable textbook for our Child Development course. He knew about my penchant for writing and jokingly remarked that we should join forces and write our textbook. The next day, he showed up with a table of contents and chapter outlines.

In the following weeks, we created a textbook prospectus, several sample chapters, and a detailed table of contents. We sent these to publishers with crossed fingers. Soon, publishers began contacting us. We were in the right place at the right time. There was a dearth of new child development textbooks on the market, and our college course had a sizable market share.

Our samples received warm reviews, and we were rewarded with a lucrative publishing contract for our child development textbook. Others followed. We wrote over twenty academic books released by some of the world’s largest publishers (Prentice Hall, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Holt Rinehart Winston, W. B. Saunders). These were used in over three hundred colleges and universities throughout the United States. The most popular, Lifespan Development, sold nearly 75,000 copies with five editions.

There were many bright sides to textbook writing. The advances were lucrative, as were the sizable royalty checks. In addition to the benefits, however, a downside led to my departure from writing college textbooks. The strict deadlines were exhausting, especially when juggling five titles simultaneously. Often, we would be revising two manuscripts while teaching college courses. Meanwhile, the publication of college textbooks declined significantly due to the upswing in used textbook sales, e-books and Kindle sales, and textbook rentals. The death of my co-author, Don Helms, led to my decision to leave academic publishing.

That didn’t mean my writing came to a screeching halt. I’ve published six novels as an independent author and remain a frequent contributor to the online publication platform Medium. I’m proud of the literary awards I’ve received during my writing odyssey: bronze medal winner of the 2024 Readers’ Favorite Book Award for The Horseman Who Came from the Sea; finalist in the 2022 Feathered Quill’s award contest for A Rescued Soul; and finalist in the 2013 Readers’ Favorite contest for The Way Back.

Q.2.   The few books I’ve reviewed, especially your deeply insightful novel The Horseman Who Came From The Sea, reveal an impressive understanding of the human condition. Such expanded understanding seems to evoke personal and universal forgiveness. Is this intentional or derived from personal experience? 

I’ve always been drawn to uplifting stories that inspire and make the reader feel optimistic at the end. The feel-good quality of my characters and storylines originates from positive traits I seek to embed, like kindness, compassion, and hope. There’s too much hostility in the world today. I want to be remembered as an author who captured feel-good qualities in his stories and offered readers an alternative to negativity.

Forgiveness is the bedrock of character integrity I hope to achieve. Acquiring forgiveness is no easy chore, but it is important enough to intertwine its dynamics in several of my books. I paint a portrait of unforgiving souls refusing to let go, desperation often triggering resentment and anger. Those unable to forgive are usually portrayed as bitter, caustic, and biased.

Those practicing forgiveness have learned to let go of the past. They recognize another’s sins can’t be undone, but forgiveness is a gift for one who holds a grudge. When a character forgives, they do it for themselves, not the other person. This way, forgiveness brings inner peace, allowing a person to move forward and not live in the past.

The path to forgiveness and other strong character traits tend to create friction and conflict. However, I make it a point to introduce a protagonist who never wavers in his/her role as a crusader or defender. For example, I created a veteran cavalry lieutenant to guide a young teenager through troubled waters. The lieutenant embodies strength and courage while helping the teenager with his troubles, enabling him to stand tall and strong. I wanted the lieutenant to be a role model of honor and gallantry, but I ensured he exuded kindness and forgiveness.