By now, I had hoped to be starting a book tour to promote my debut novel, Journeyman, which is available at the website of my publisher Fleur-de-Lis Press, and the other booksellers listed below. Sadly, with the world plagued as it is by the coronavirus, that is not possible. So, I am safely sheltering at home in Louisville with my wife. Meanwhile, what better way to pass the time than by reading books? I hope one of your choices is Journeyman and that you enjoy it. Be careful out there.
All the best,
Rick Neumayer
“Two intrepid young men set out from Kentucky to retrace the westward peregrinations of Kerouac and Cassady. Journeyman propels us through these misadventures as though we were along for the ride.”
- Ed McClanahan Author of The Natural Man
“A timeless tale of youth striving to define not only itself but the world it inhabits. Honest, funny, and heartbreaking. Delivers everything a reader could wish for--action, characters who are convincing and engaging, and ideas worth pondering.”
- Sena Jeter Naslund Author of Ahab’s Wife, Sherlock in Love, Four Spirits
“Immerses the reader viscerally in the America of 1970–71. A moving and provocative story of initiation during a time not unlike our own.”
- K. L. Cook Author of The Art of Disobedience
Biography
Rick Neumayer
I am a Louisville native and have lived here all my life, except for four years in California. Although a teacher by trade, I have had a variety of experiences, including traveling abroad and studying in Scotland, Spain, and Ireland.
In college I worked as a journalist, summer interning at the Courier-Journal & Louisville Times and then for two years was a part-time reporter for The Park City Daily News in Bowling Green. In 1971, I hitchhiked across the country with a friend, an experience which inspired Journeyman. Later that year, I married my wife, whom I had met in the teacher’s lounge of a junior high while subbing.
After a year as a food stamp social worker, I went back to grad school and later took a job at Jeffersonville High, where I spent the next three decades until retiring from teaching in 2004. I also taught writing part-time at both the University of Louisville and Jefferson Community College, co-edited River City Review literary magazine, reviewed books for The Louisville Courier-Journal, and began winning a few contests and publishing short fiction in small literary magazines.
Somehow I found time to indulge interests in classic private eye mystery fiction (creating a series of my own still in progress), scuba diving, mini-marathoning, and weightlifting. I also love music and sang in the glee club at Male High. Following my daughter’s birth, I became lead singer and front man for a local cover band. For the next fifteen years I spent weekends and some nights singing classic rock and blues at bars and weddings. That exhilarating experience led to co-writing hundreds of original songs and eventually full-length Broadway-style musicals, three of which have been produced (see videos below). Others are in the works.
Productions
David
and Bathsheba
A musical
drama by Rick Neumayer, David Sisk & Bill Corcoran
“The biblical story of David and Bathsheba
has it all: bravery, intrigue, love, betrayal and retribution...
A huge evening of family entertainment”
--Greg Gapsis, Jeffersonville Evening
News
The story of Israel’s greatest king and warrior, who
as author of the Psalms also is its greatest poet and song writer.
From the young shepherd boy’s stone-flinging victory over Goliath to
his consuming desire for the tempting Bathsheba, the show blends memorable
music, a dramatic love story to wring the hardest heart, and a smattering
of comedy.
Original songs: You Will Adore Us, The Lord
Is My Shepherd, Goliath’s Challenge, What Does It Take To Be A Wife,
A Mighty Fall, My King, Half Full, Let’s Sing About Love, Make Up A
Rhyme, Out Of My Mind Over You, How Do I Say No, What Is Love, My Baby
and Me, End Of The Story
Mark Twain On The River
A musical
comedy fantasy by Bill Corcoran & Rick Neumayer
“The haunting number “A Pap Has a Job
to Do” is filled with minor chords and roaring arpeggios that sound
like crashing waves.... fast-paced, with quality songs and interesting
choreography...”
--Sherry Deatrick, Louisville Eccentric Observer
A bankrupt city is about
to turn its floating theatre into a casino when Mark Twain miraculously
appears. This is a musical fantasy about miracles, fathers and sons,
and love’s redemptive power. Some scenes have a familiar charm, but
it’s a brand-new story that will surprise and delight a broad audience
of all ages, but especially those who love Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry
Finn. Among others, the ensemble cast includes Twain, Tom, Huck, Aunt
Polly, Pap Finn, Jim, Becky Thatcher, and Judge Thatcher.
Cast size: 13 Principal characters: 7 Men, 6 Women; 2-8 Chorus members
depending on the pragmatism and ingenuity of the director. A full piano/conductor
score is available. Digitally orchestrated rehearsal and/or performance
tracks can be provided.
Original songs: River Boat Show, Send Me A Sign, All You Need Is Vision,
Missouri Forget It, A Pap Has A Job To Do, Engaged, Free Free Free,
I’ll Never Tell, You Do What You Gotta Do, The Ohio, What Would Mister
Twain Do,v A Big Disgrace, It’s True It’s True, Nobody Told Me, No
More Dancin’ Shows
Little Bear of the Miami:
The Frances Slocum Story
A musical drama by Bill Corcoran & Rick
Neumayer
The true story of a young Quaker girl, who was abducted from her family and raised as the daughter of a Miami chief in Indiana.
Little Bear is s a tale
of adventure, love and the triumph of the human spirit. It will appeal
to a broad audience of all ages, but especially to lovers of historical
fiction and those who believe that women and men can endure and prevail
over life’s most arduous challenges. The play also focuses on the brutal
and unjust treatment of Native Americans and the senselessness of war.
Original songs: Night Sky, Story Game, Red Hair White Skin, Hear Us
Great Spirit, Twelve Skies Only One Sacred, Beautiful, Mostly Men Are
Useless, White Man Must Pay, Save The People, Days Of The Sun, Legend
of Little Bear, My Life My Land