Topic: A reliable Richard Bach's biography

This topic has 6 voices, contains 14 replies, and was last updated by jennifer from Belgium 81 days ago.

Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)

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February 16, 2012 at 6:21 am #5007
Maija	Hello! I am passionate about flying and love Richard Bach’s books, I am writing a term paper about them. One of the chapters, therefore, should be about the author himself. Can anyone tell me where a reliable his biography can be found, please? (Wikipedia can’t really be used as a source). Thank you in advance, Maija
February 16, 2012 at 7:31 am #5010
Coleen	Hi Maija, Maybe you should ask the man himself!!!
February 16, 2012 at 7:40 am #5015
jennifer from Belgium	Hi Maija….i agree with Coleen. I think the best for you to do..and this is great..you can ask Richard yourself. Get some questions together and e-mail him directly up at top of site there’s a contact e-mail. Explain and send the questions and i’m sure he’ll give you what you’re looking for. He’ll want you to do the work and prepare what you need….you are very lucky cause he makes himself accessible…oh…and.be nice! Tell him Coleen and Jennifer sent you….
February 16, 2012 at 1:54 pm #5031
Coleen	Maija, Yep, you tell him “that we will bring extra hot chocolate and cookies to the chalet if he wouldn’t mind giving you a little time”, from Jennifer and Coleen! Then if he does not have the time, we are the ones in trouble, not you!
February 16, 2012 at 3:05 pm #5032
Maija	Thank you so much for the advice and encouragement. I really appreciate it. Well, then I’ll formulate my questions, take the courage and write him.
February 16, 2012 at 3:18 pm #5033
Simon	I think when Richard read it … he will answer you I think you dont have to write him … He is very kind and friendly … but I didn´t see him there for a long time … nobody knows where is he flying
February 16, 2012 at 11:18 pm #5052
jennifer from Belgium	Last I heard he’s fine…he’s involved in something that is taking some time. He’s with us here.
February 17, 2012 at 5:37 am #5068
lincolnbuff2	Maija, You didn’t mention the time frame you have in which to complete the paper, nor whether you live someplace with easy access to interlibrary loan privileges. All of Richard’s books together can give a fairly accurate picture of his life in the “traditional” biography sense, where he lived growing up, a rough time-frame and some of the milestones along the way. As you surely must know, if you’re a reader of Richard’s books, he’s not a “traditional” kind of guy, nor is his life story. Because of Richard’s perspective on space and time, you won’t find the dates and chronology someone in academics is seeking, not all neatly laid out as they may expect, anyway. You’ll find some information on his life and wanderings in the books that have been collected in the _Flying_ volume, more in _Running for Safety_, _Bridge Across Forever_ and _One_, taking care in those last three, of course, to distinguish between fact and fiction, and you can find a bit of an biographical sketch of Richard from his son Jonathan’s perspective in Jon’s book, _Above the Clouds_ and his son James’s angle in _Buccaneer Scholar_. If you don’t hear back from Richard because of other commitments he may have, you may leave a comment on an article on my “Musings on Route 66″ blog here, http://musingsonroute66.blogspot.com/. Leave me a message there with your email address. I have to moderate, so your personal information won’t be published. I’ll be the only one who will see it. I can provide a mini-biography from a 40-year-long reader’s perspective, which you may use as a source. As a writer and student of American literature, I’ve studied Richard’s work, including articles in periodicals, in great depth, for decades. I may be able to help you fill in some of the gaps if you don’t have access to these works. Ideally, I hope Richard finds your request and has time to reply to you. What a wonderful paper that would be, with Richard’s own words telling his story. He does it so well. However, if he doesn’t, please know, I’m glad to help you, as others have helped my in my journey as a lifelong learner. Ann
February 19, 2012 at 11:37 pm #5205
Richard	Maija, if you take a minute and ask who cares about a writer’s biography, my guess is that your most honest answer will be nobody. One reader in a thousand can say the name of the person who wrote the book they’re reading, Wikipedia is mostly wrong, the Internet will say anyone’s an angel and a scoundrel on adjoining pages. Your paper will be the more interesting if you add a sentence: “Nothing is known about this shadowy writer.” I’ve worked hard to cultivate and maintain my air of mystery. You may help me with Appendix A to your teacher or professor: “I have been in contact with Mr. Bach. His only statement is that he requests and requires you to grant Maija the grade of A or its equivalent on this paper.” As I sense from your excellent English that you are in a Ukraine or Russian educational system, I authorize you to append this subtle hint to your school authorities should they disregard Appendix A: “Mой брат адвокат.”
February 20, 2012 at 1:42 pm #5240
lincolnbuff2	Whew! So glad you appeared back in the chalet before Majia took me up on my offer, Richard. I realized as soon as I hit “Enter” that I was in way over my head! How could one ever fully describe the life journey of our friend Richard Bach?
February 21, 2012 at 10:22 am #5277
Maija	Dear Mr. Bach, I really appreciate your answer and respect your position on ‘the air of mystery’. I guess I can do without the biographical chapter. Will see how my professor reacts to your request about the grade of A. As regards my English, I am from Latvia, so your guess was rather close. Since I have the chance I would like to say that I am fond of your books. As I don’t have the opportunity to get up in the sky as much as I would like to, your books with all the adventures, contemplation and love for heaven allows me to feel the joy of being up there. Thank you so much for that!
February 21, 2012 at 4:38 pm #5290
Richard	The power of the law being respected in Latvia, my warning to those who would not deliver your A shall be this: Mans brālis ir advokāts! I hope it doesn’t come to that.
February 24, 2012 at 1:19 pm #5355
Maija	It is amazing to see the Latvian language here. Paldies!
February 25, 2012 at 12:59 pm #5393
jennifer from Belgium	But Richard….are you really a mystery? I don’t know. It seems to me that you are so clear and revealing–never thought of you as anything other than a very close family member. Am I wrong? Do you see your readers seeing you like this?
February 25, 2012 at 1:02 pm #5394
jennifer from Belgium	If I were Maija I would create a biography that would suit the needs of both worlds…acedemic and spiritual essence. Maija create something beautiful that could satisfy both Richard and your teacher…it may a great contribution to your class.