#27 Robert Barker - Author / Veteran / Charlie Chaplin / Comedy / F. Scott Fitzgerald

Welcome to another episode of "Wish I Knew . . . "

A podcast where I speak with people about their careers focusing on their success, advice, mentoring and listening to interesting stories.

I've got a good friend and author to share his story thus far Robert Barker.

Background

Author of 5 books under the pen name Robert Nicolas
- Served our country in the Army
- Went to Indiana University
- Majored in Telecommunications and Sociology
- Worked for an insurance company for 16 years. Did not love it
- Transitioned to full time author in 2007 under the name of Robert Nicolas

Highlights:

Taught himself to read as a child
- Attended Catholic school
- Wrote short stories
- An English teacher in High School left him alone in class to write
- Constantly moved around growing up
- Walked out of high school with 3 days left in his junior year
- Traveled back to hometown of Indianapolis for a girl
- The Army trained him to be a journalist
- Turned down a chance to attend West Point
- Got a ‘Dear Robert’ letter while in basic training
- Feels he’s a genius and an idiot at the same time
- Found out Alaska is an international assignment in the military
- Took a Charlie Chaplin class in college. Saw all the films, where he learned about story telling, especially Beginning / Middle / End, like a snake eating its tail.
- Did standup comedy, gotta have guts to do it.
- Must churn out material constantly
- Improved his public speaking with practice and understanding your material
- Embrace your nerves
- In 1990 conversation with a publisher told him it was obvious he could write, had to keep that compliment for a long time
- Best fantasy career
- The moon is a sore point for Robert
- Would like to give assurance to F. Scott Fitzgerald that he was great

Want to be a guest? Email me at [email protected]!