brianrayfiction.com Blog

After a “long time” of writing about people and things for newspapers, there’s now a story all about yours truly in The State. Mother Nature made a considerable effort to stop this one. Being the obsessive “get it done now” maniac, I returned Bertram Rantin’s call while driving through a rocky patch of West Virginia and tried to give an interview at a McDonald’s fenced in by mountains on the heels of a storm. Not a great idea. He asked a question, and then the connection died. I called back. The interview got rolling, and then the connection severed. I called back and called back. Finally, we finished with my car on the outskirts of Louisville. We’re both patient and determined fellows. The interview went well once my phone cooperated, and we wound up talking about teaching and books. Hope everyone enjoys this as much as I do. I have to read this story out of the corner of my eyes – still a bit timid when it comes to attention.