I began writing Riddle of Berlin in about August of 2000.  I began with the thought of what is the process of redemption in the walking around world, not in religious terms or the after-life as contemplated in all religions.  I set it in Paris because that is where I was at the time.  I also described a running path along the Seine and around the Ille St. Louis that I had undertaken countless times over the years.  It was always a pleasant process, as is the writing of stories.

The writing took about 18 months, working part-time as time allowed by my day job.  Much of the writing was done on airplanes, largely American Airlines, flying across the Atlantic and Pacific.  My anti-jet lag regimen has always been to drink about a bottle of champagne before I get on the plane and then keep on drinking (mixed with Tokaji, Plum Wine, or other after-dinner drink) until I reach a level of free creativity (my routine today as well).  This takes 3-4 hours and in that zone of mind is a wonderful place to let fingers loose on the keyboard of a laptop.

The manuscript was read by a few friends and then collected dust on a shelf until about the summer 2006 when my sweetheart Dale Lyrane suggested that I dust it off and see if it had any commercial potential.  In due course this led to engaging iUniverse to provide editorial and other publication preparation services. 

I should note that iUniverse is a publishing arrangement in which I retain ownership of the copyright and iUniverse provides disaggregated publishing services on a fee basis.  This process has been phenomenal.  I feel like I have received a Ph.D. in creative writing and editing.  While the editing has consumed fully 12-16 months of time (because I wanted to do the revisions and learn in the process, not due to the slowness of the publisher), I am amazed at how the manuscript has taken shape in what I hope will be a well-accepted commercial product.

One question that I am always asked when I appear to discuss Riddle of Berlin is why did  I choose a self-publishing route instead of seeking an agent and then a mainline publishing house.  The reason is simple enough.  I have always succeeded in life by doing things my way.  Had I followed conventional wisdom in developing a legal career, investment of money or conduct of life, I would have ended up in a much different situation than I have.  I am very fortunate.

I have had a long career in the non-fiction world of publishing professional, international taxation books.  In that world, I was lucky early in my career to have been chosen by one of the prominent professional publishers (Warren Gorham Lamont, which ultimately became part if Research Institute of America and which, in turn, became part of the Thomson Publishing empire).  WG&L has been a splendid writing partner.  I do the writing and they have a world class editorial, publicity, field service, and other infrastructure.

“So what do I know about the fiction publishing world?” I asked the man in the mirror once my sweetheart said I should find out about the commercial potential of the manuscripts that I had written and she was good enough to read (all described below, and to be finished in due course).

“Nothing!” came the answer from the experienced, worldly, curly grey-headed visage on the wall.  So I asked my lawyer, Bill Adams of Salt Lake City, “what I should do?”  His sage advice was “keep the copyright.  Don’t sign it away to someone or some company you do not know, at a point in time when you have no idea whether it has any commercial value.”  Well, I have learned to follow my lawyers’ advice.

Hence,  iUniverse.  If my stories have legs and an agent or commercial publisher has interest, then Mr. Adams can do his thing, while I write away at my lake house in Texas (pictures of my writing context appear below under “My Space”) or on airplanes for my day job.