About

Above the Fold

Richard L. Fricks is the author of eleven novels, all set in his hometown of Boaz, Alabama.

After graduating in 1976 from Auburn University with a degree in accounting, Richard worked for the international firm of Ernst & Ernst (now Ernst & Young). In 1980, he started his own CPA firm, and managed the practice until 1993, when he and his family moved to Virginia Beach, Virginia for Richard to attend graduate school.

After earning a Master’s in Public Policy and a J.D. in law, Richard passed the Alabama bar and opened his own practice in 1997. From the beginning, he preferred criminal defense work, and by 2002, spent ninety percent of his time defending those charged with serious felonies, including capital murder.

Although Richard discovered a strong interest in fiction writing while in law school, it wasn’t until 2015 that he wrote God and Girl, his first novel. Since then, he’s written ten more, with the twelfth in the works.

Now, 2024 is here and Richard has started a new adventure, one deeply embedded in his love of novel writing. As they say, one thing leads to another. With his unquenching desire to learn what makes a great story, Richard has embarked on the pursuit of the coveted Fictionary StoryCoach Editor certification.

Richard says, “before this latest adventure, I thought fiction writing was the biggest challenge of my life. Now, I know I was wrong. Learning to become a Fictionary StoryCoach Editor is even bigger. But, after only three weeks of intensive study, I know for sure there’s no better path for learning what makes a great story.”

Below the Fold

In between accounting, lawyering, and fiction-writing (and often at the same time) I’ve wandered many a disparate path, trying things such as farming, residential construction, financial planning, meat processing, and slow-smoking barbecue to name a few. In sum, I’ve been a wanderer.

Questions. Why wasn’t I told the following before graduating high school, or, at least, upon graduating college? Would it have made a difference?

Another question: During my first sixty years of life, why didn’t someone at least suggest I read and think more broadly, beyond the walls of Southern Baptist fundamentalism? It’s not like there was nothing available to read.

If you’re bold and brave enough to question your faith, start here: The Cure-for-Christianity Library.