SHINING A SPOTLIGHT ON AUTHOR ARTHUR COBURN

I am thrilled to welcome Arthur Coburn to our creative corner of the internet. Not only is Arthur a storyteller and a thinker amongst many other things, he also brings a unique perspective to the table. 

 
BIO:
Arthur Coburn grew up in New Jersey, went to Dartmouth College and Harvard Law School, passed the Washington bar, exam spent two years in the U.S. Infantry as a first Lieutenant, and survived a three-year law career, before bailing out and landing a job for King Screen Productions, a filmmaking Division of the KING Broadcasting Company in Seattle. His first assignment there was to make a chart of all the proposals for peace in Vietnam.  He progressed to directing commercials, industrials and documentaries; later to writing educational film scripts for the same company.  When the division closed, he worked as a freelance writer – doing environmental impact statements, and as a freelance still photographer.
 
After he left the law, Arthur wrote dramatic educational film scripts, and won a local Emmy for a documentary, then moved to Hollywood, where he edited more than two dozen films, including Spiderman,  A Simple Plan and The Cooler. He is a member of Sisters in Crime and MWA; and he goes to writing conferences. He has taken a screen writing class John Truby, studied with poet and novelist Jim Krusoe at Santa Monica College.  He took a class with author Kris Neri in mystery writing, and two courses with novelist and short story writer Tod Goldberg at UCLA. He has written five novels: Murder in Concrete (to be published in 2024) Murder in Madrona (currently in revision); and several awaiting care and review: MaBoys Will Be Boys, Mostly (general fiction),  Rough Cut (a thriller). 

He won the Novel Prize at the Southern California Writer’s Conference in June 2005 for Rough Cut.  His short stories, Some CreatureI Care About, and Backswing, appeared in  Sisters in Crime Anthologies: LA marked for Murder and Ladies Night. 

Arthur is a member of the Motion Picture Academy and the Foreign Film Committee for which he watches dozens of domestic films and upward of fifty movies from all over the world in order to vote for best foreign film. 


He has traveled and worked in Morroco, Poland, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Canada and France, speaks serviceable French and Italian and watches the French and Italian channels on cable. He learned enough Polish to order tomato soup without rice and enough Swahili to order hot water for a shower when he was on a shoot in a desert encampment in Kenya. Arthur skis, road bikes, and has a pilots’ license. Plays a little classical guitar and can improvise on the piano and Hammond organ. He has a Hammond B2 and a Leslie speaker at home.


He worked as a film editor in Hollywood on more than two dozen features. 
His current novel, Murder in Concrete, was picked up by The Wild Rose Press largely due to the sympathetic eye and efforts of his fabulous editor, Dianne Rich of TWRP. She saw the novel’s value from the start and guided him past various hurdles to bring it home. He is currently revising another novel and hoping to publish it in 2025
 

Wow. That’s some bio. Arthur, welcome! 

Today we are showcasing Murder in Concrete. An interesting title to say the least, and I can’t wait to read it.

A small town murder unravels a teenage girl’s life as she tries to discover who is responsible for killing her mother and learns that everything she thought she knew might be an illusion.

Charlie Purdue was just another small town teenage girl until she discovered her mother’s dead body at home after school. All signs point to her father, who has disappeared, but his cryptic final words to Charlie have always left her wondering. When she spots him in a film months later, she’s shaken to her core and dead set on going to Los Angeles to find him and unearth the truth of what really happened that horrible day.

What follows is a gripping odyssey through the underbelly of LA’s film industry, where everything Charlie thought she knew about her life is suddenly, and shockingly, brought into question.

 

Q: I know my readers would love to know about your journey publication. At what age were you when you first felt writing was in your blood?

A: I started writing stories at age five; I’d play them in a theatre I created by turning a card table on its side, painting a backdrop, suspending my teddy bears from strings and reciting the lines I’d created for them I’d charge 3 cents to neighborhood people.

In high school I created skits which I performed at assemblies.

Q: I must admit I laughed with delight when I read this, immediately seeing you as a budding entrepreneur in your very tender years! So, I guess this must have been a theme throughout your life.

A: Yes. In college, I wrote stories..

Working as a film editor in Hollywood, I gave script additions to directors, including Robert M. Young for his movie Triumph of the Spirit.

 

Q: Thank you. So moving on, do you have special place where you like to write? 

A: I write every day on my laptop at my dining room table, saving copies to thumb drives and to my C drive with backups on OneDrive.

Q: Arthur, I am always trying to remind myself how important it is to back up every bit of writing. So many times have I read authors in distress as they’ve lost countless words through no real fault of their own. I guess you have it cracked. I need to learn!

So, do you have any social media accounts, and what do you feel is important to share?

A: I post photos and newsworthy items on Facebook and Instagram. I am on Instagram at boxcamguy; and arthurcoburnauthor.
On facebook @arthurcoburn

Q: I’ll be looking them up right away.

Thank you Arthur for sharing your journey so far. It has been a fascinating read, and no doubt there will be so much more to come, so please let me know when your next book is on release. 

But that’s not all folks – it would be wonderful if you write to us in the comment box right at the bottom of the page – I’m sure Arthur would be glad to answer any burning questions. And, as we know it’s important to share links and socials – so here we go:

Amazon: https://www.facebook.com/arthur.coburn.7

Amazon: https://a.co/d/3n2JoL4

Instagram: arthurcoburn.com

Thank you once again for joining us. We would love to hear from you, just post a note below – all things writerly of course.

Take care – happy reading – keep in touch.

 

Author, Uncategorised

Comments (7)

  • Kim Janine Ligon

    The books sounds intriguing. If you follow the edict to write what you know, you'll have lots of material. Dianne Rich is a marvel and so good at pulling out your best story!

    Reply
    • manager

      Thank you Kim - I'll make sure Arthur knows you've written

      Reply
  • Meryl Brown Tobin

    An entertaining and interesting bio, Arthur, and I also enjoyed reading Lynn's interview with you. Best wishes with 'Murder in Concrete'. Meryl

    Reply
    • manager

      Thank you Meryl, I'll be sure to pass this onto Arthur.

      Reply
  • Ilona Fridl

    Very impressed with your bio! I'm sure your book will be a knock out.

    Reply
    • manager

      Thank you Ilona, I'll be sure to make sure Arthur reads these posts.

      Reply
  • Hywela Lyn

    What an interesting interview - and 'murder In Concrete sounds like an amazing read!

    Reply

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