Interview with Richard Alan

 



Richard, welcome to Hardcover Feedback!

Would you tell us a little about yourself? After an education in mathematics, a 17 year career in manufacturing engineering and a 22 year career in software engineering, I started a career as an author. I write novels about people trying to find their life-partner, soul-mate, the person they are meant to be with for life. My first two books, Meant to Be and The Couples, are available on my website and most online retailers. Ilive in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with his wife, Carolynn. We are the proud parents of three wonderful adult sons. I am a Vietnam combat and 101st Airborne Division veteran. My other interests range from mathematical analysis and photography to anything with an engine. My current projects include writing the third (Finding Each Other) and fourth novels in the “Meant to Be” series, and discovering the properties of functions of p-adic numbers.

What or who made the biggest influence on you wanting to become a writer?
I was asked to write an article for a blog (http://memoirsfromnam.blogspot.com/) about my experiences in Vietnam. I submitted the article and it was published. CJ Heck, the owner of the blog, a published author,
asked how long I had been writing. I replied that I hadn't ever been an author and she replied that I should. That was about a year and three months ago. Since then I have completed three books and have just started a fourth.

What was the first book you ever wrote about and was it ever published?
Meant to Be is the first book I wrote. I self-published.

Do you have any writing habits that people might find unusual?
I don’t think so.

Do you have a favorite character or one that is especially close to your heart?
Meyer is my favorite character, but don’t tell the others.

What is the best gift you have ever received and who gave it to you?
My children are God’s gift to me.

What is something that you have always wanted to do, but just haven't gotten around to it yet?
I want to sail around the Windward Islands in the Caribbean.

What is your all-time favorite book?
That’s a difficult question because I love so many books, authors, and genres. The top of my list would include:
Leon Uris – Exodus, Mila 18, QB VII, Trinity, O’Hara’s Choice
Michael Crighton- The Andromeda Strain, Congo, Disclosure, Jurassic Park, Prey, Rising Sun, Timeline
James Mitchner – The Bridges of Toko-Ri, Chesapeake, Hawaii, The Source,
Robert Ardrey – African Genesis: A Personal Investigation into the Animal Origins and Nature of Man

Other than yourself, who is your favorite author? 
Steven Hawking

If a TV show was based on your life, what would the theme song be and why?
“Timothy” from “Peter Gun” because it expresses the speed and intensity I find in life.

What do you like to do in your spare time?
I read, play drums, study German and Hebrew using Rosetta Stone, write math proofs, and drive my wife to watch salmon runs, visit National Parks, and anywhere that provides an opportunity to view her avian friends.

Are you an early bird or a night owl?
Early bird

What is your favorite TV show and/or movie?
It is a tie between “Those Magnificent Men and Their Flying Machines” and “Anne of Green Gables”. I love comedy, airplanes and engines. I also like the way Anne grew as a person throughout the story.

If you had the opportunity to go anywhere you wanted, at anytime in history, where would you go
and why?
I would have wanted to work in the Swiss Patent Office while Einstein developed his theory of relativity.

If you were throwing a dinner party and you could invite five people (fictional or real, dead or alive)
who would you invite?
I would invite Steven Hawking, Roger Penrose, Amy Tan, Walter Rudin, and Leon Uris.

What are you currently working on? 
While my third book, Finding Each Other is being edited, I am writing the fourth book in the “Meant to Be” series. The storylines just keep on coming.

Where can people connect with you online?
Website – www.villagedrummerfiction.com
Blog – www.villagedrummerfiction.wordpress.com
Facebook – www.facebook.com/The.Village.Drummer
Twitter – www.twitter.com/@VillageDrummerF
eMail – richard@villagedrummerfiction.com

Thank you so much Richard for being on Hardcover Feedback!


Author Bio:
Richard Alan lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with his wife, Carolynn. They are the proud parents of three wonderful adult sons. He is a Vietnam combat and 101st Airborne Division veteran. After careers in manufacturing management and firmware development, he has started a career as an author. Richard writes fictional novels about people trying to find their life-partner, soul-mate, the person they are meant to be with for life. His other interests range from mathematical analysis and photography to anything with an engine. His current projects include writing the third and fourth novels in the “Meant to Be” series, and discovering the
properties of functions of p-adic numbers. Having completed a potting bench for his lifepartner, Carolynn, he is busy driving her to watch salmon runs, visit National Parks, and anywhere that provides an opportunity to view her avian friends.

His latest books in the Meant to Be Series are Meant to Be and The Couples.

You can visit Richard Alan’s website, VILLAGE DRUMMER FICTION at www.villagedrummerfiction.com.

Website | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Amazon Kindle Store (Meant to Be) | CreateSpace (Meant to Be) | Amazon Kindle Store (The Couples) | CreateSpace (The Couples)

 

ABOUT THE MEANT TO BE SERIES

Meant to Be: When four year old Meyer met five year old Joan, they had no idea that the two of them would be spending a lifetime together. Three generations of friends and family would help them celebrate the good times and help get them through the tragic times. A new book about love and life from author, Richard Alan.

The Couples: This novel follows seven couples as they explore their relationships to determine if they are meant to be together. As the couple’s lives intertwine we learn how the world around them helps or at times hinders them. Their story comes alive with carefully crafted characters that the reader will identify with and want to know more about. Their struggle to move from individuals to couples to families is richly depicted in this work.

Richard Alan’s second book in the “Meant to Be” series further explores relationships, love and life.