Pub. 60 2019-2020 Issue 2

26 From lobbyist to a young-adult author is quite a leap. What inspired you to write a book? I always loved to write. The Message in the Painted Rock is my first published work, however. My grandson, Jonah, was having a birthday, and I wanted to do something different and special just for him. The plan wasn’t to publish it. I just wanted to write a story about some of my interests and share them with him in a one-issue, self-publishing endeavor. After I finished the manuscript, I sent it to a friend to read. He said I should publish it. It’s like the old political adage, one person can talk someone into running for office, and a thousand people can’t talk them out of it. The idea of publishing it took hold. My friend knew people, and no one tried to stop me, so here we are. Detective stories are a genre that you have read for years — was that an inspiration for your book? No. It is true the I love a good detective story, but the inspiration for this story came from another book, The White Shaman Mural by Carolyn Boyd, which is about the Lower Pecos Canyonlands pictographs. I was an anthropology major in college, so the subject is something that speaks to me. I understand you are interested in the King Arthur legends, and you worked that into your story — what is it about that legend that interests you to include it in this story? Yes, the King Arthur legends have been an interest of mine for years. I have about four feet of books about King Arthur in my home library. King Arthur is the quintessential hero. The stories follow the hero journey referenced by Joseph Campbell in his work. I love the stories of King Arthur. The myths, the legends, the real guy — to the extent there was one, of course. King Arthur had to be part of my story. You have laid the predicate for more books for these characters — is that your intent? On a summery day some decades ago, Tom Blanton, came of age. The oh-so talented young attorney turned his sights on a mission — doing his "lobby" best for the franchised dealers across the street. Tom was known for 34 years by all who walked the hallowed halls of the Texas Capital as "the dealer's lobbyist." He proudly and judiciously worked his artful and virtuous magic for our family of dealers. Tom is also known to his friends as "TB," "the Great Blantini," and "where did he go — he was just here!" His talents, in addition to disappearing, include writing. Tom is now a published author with a book Q and A: Tom Blanton that began as a special story for his grandson. While his book, The Message in the Painted Rock, was just published this year, it has already been receiving media attention, which includes winning 2nd place in the 2019 PenCraft Awards, which recognizes 48 remarkable works in numerous categories at its 3rd Annual Event. If you haven't read it, I encourage you to go forth and buy the book! It will be a pleasurable afternoon read and you will hear Tom's voice in many of the characters. — Karen Phillips