Tell us about yourself.:
W.D. Kilpack III is an award-winning and critically acclaimed internationally published writer, with works appearing in print, online, radio and television, starting with his first publication credit at the age of nine, when he wrote an award-winning poem. As an adult, he received special recognition from L. Ron Hubbard's Writers of the Future Contest. He has been editor and/or publisher of nineteen news and literary publications, both online and in print, with circulations as high as 770,000. He is an accomplished cook and has two claims he thinks few can match: cooking nearly every type of food on a grill; and nearly being knocked flat when his grill exploded.
He received both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Westminster College of Salt Lake City. As an undergrad, he double-majored in communication and philosophy, while completing the Honors Program. As a graduate student, he earned a master of professional communication with a writing emphasis. He was also a high-performing athlete, qualifying for international competition in Greco-Roman wrestling.
He is a communication professor and a nationally recognized wrestling coach. He is happily married to his high-school sweetheart and is father to five children, as well as helping to raise five step-children. He was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he continues to live, coach and teach.
Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?:
I grew up in West Jordan, Utah. I had several teachers who really influenced my writing, starting with Miss Adams who taught Gifted & Talented in 4th grade and helped me get my first publication credit by entering one of my poems in a contest through the local newspaper. In 6th & 7th grades, Mrs. Ferrin was a great influence, teaching my Language Arts and Gifted & Talented classes. My first novel was written over a span of writing assignments for her class., where she let me write chapters for my book, rather than having to comply with the proscribed assignment requirements. In 8th grade, my Computer Science teacher, Mrs. Demond, was incredibly supportive. She read my hand-written manuscripts and letting me take time in her classroom before and after school to type them. In high school, Mrs. McKinnon was super supportive of my writing, often reading my sci-fi and fantasy short stories to my 9th grade Honors English class, even though that wasn't very cool at the time. Throughout the rest of my high-school experience, Mrs. Sawaya was like a second mother, really taking an interest in my writing and me as a person, teaching my Journalism classes and as the advisor for the newspaper and the literary magazine. All were hugely supportive of my writing and I wouldn't have been exposed to any of them had I not grown up in West Jordan.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don't know if it's unusual, but my wife loves her bedtime stories. I read her my work and she sometimes tells me if she thinks this character wouldn't do something or say something. She provides a little bit of a reality check for me.
What authors have influenced you?
I grew up in West Jordan, Utah. I had several teachers who really influenced my writing, starting with Miss Adams who taught Gifted & Talented in 4th grade and helped me get my first publication credit by entering one of my poems in a contest through the local newspaper. In 6th & 7th grades, Mrs. Ferrin was a great influence, teaching my Language Arts and Gifted & Talented classes. My first novel was written over a span of writing assignments for her class., where she let me write chapters for my book, rather than having to comply with the proscribed assignment requirements. In 8th grade, my Computer Science teacher, Mrs. Demond, was incredibly supportive. She read my hand-written manuscripts and letting me take time in her classroom before and after school to type them. In high school, Mrs. McKinnon was super supportive of my writing, often reading my sci-fi and fantasy short stories to my 9th grade Honors English class, even though that wasn't very cool at the time. Throughout the rest of my high-school experience, Mrs. Sawaya was like a second mother, really taking an interest in my writing and me as a person, teaching my Journalism classes and as the advisor for the newspaper and the literary magazine. All were hugely supportive of my writing and I wouldn't have been exposed to any of them had I not grown up in West Jordan.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write what you love and become a true student of your passions. If you write sci-fi and fantasy, no one in the room should ever be more of an expert on sci-fi and fantasy than you are.
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