Summary
Robert Mayer (born October 21, 1959) is a New York Times-bestselling author and the CEO of Cool Gus Publishing. He is a West Point graduate and former Green Beret. Mayer has authored over 60 novels in multiple genres, selling more than 4 million books, including the #1 series Area 51, Atlantis, and The Green Berets. He has written under the pen names Joe Dalton, Robert Doherty, Greg Donegan, and Bob McGuire. He holds the distinction of being the only male author on the Romance Writers of America Honor Roll.
Bob Mayer | |
|---|---|
| Born | Robert John Mayer October 21, 1959 New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation |
|
| Nationality | American |
| Citizenship | United States |
| Education | United States Military Academy |
| Period | 1991 to present |
| Genres | Science fiction, thriller, historical, romance |
| Website | |
| bobmayer | |
Early life edit
Robert John "Bob" Mayer was born in the Bronx, New York City on October 21, 1959.[1] After high school, Mayer was accepted to the United States Military Academy at West Point.[2] There, he graduated with honors in the top 10 percent of his class, earning a BA in psychology in 1981.[3] He later earned a master's degree in Education at Austin Peay State University.[4]
In the Army, Mayer served in the infantry with the 1st Cavalry Division, later as platoon leader and a brigade recon platoon leader.[5] He joined Special Forces and commanded a Green Berets A-Team from 1984 to 1988.[6] He served as the operations officer for 2nd Battalion, 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) and with Special Operations Command (Special Projects) in Hawaii.[7] He later taught Green Beret recruits at the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School in Fort Bragg, NC.[8]
Mayer is an honor graduate of the Special Forces Qualification Course, the John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School Instructor Training Course and the Danish Royal Navy Fromandkorpset. He is a Master Parachutist/Jumpmaster Qualified and graduated from the International Mountain Climbing School.[9] He has completed 14 marathons, including qualifying for the Boston Marathon and running it three times.[10]
Writing career edit
Mayer's prolific writing encompasses both his military experience and his fascination for history, legends and mythology. To date, he has published over 65 titles. Though most of his novels reside within the realm of science fiction, he has crossed successfully into multiple genres including historical, military, suspense, young adult and romance. His books have hit on numerous bestselling lists including The New York Times, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly.[11]
Mayer began his writing career in 1991 with the Green Beret novel Eyes of the Hammer. The next year, he followed with his second novel, Dragon Sim-13. A total of 9 books have been written in the series.
In 1997, under his pen name Robert Doherty, Mayer released Area 51. He wrote eight sequels to Area 51 from 1998 to 2004. Four more were published from 2018 to 2020.
In September 2004, Mayer met romance novelist Jennifer Crusie at a writer's conference in Maui.[12] The pair collaborated on a series of military-themed romance novels - Don't Look Down (2006), Agnes and the Hitman (2007), and Wild Ride (2009). Mayer and Crusie's collaborations took place via email, with Mayer writing from the male perspective and Crusie writing those scenes that involved the female perspective.[13] Agnes and the Hitman became a NYT bestseller, earning Mayer a spot on the Romance Writers of America Honor Roll.[14]
In 2009, Mayer realized a digital transition in the publishing industry was happening. Along with Jen Talty, Mayer formed Cool Gus Publishing (formerly Who Dares Wins Publishing) in 2010 as a platform to reissue his extensive backlist.[15][16] Cool Gus Publishing authors currently include Colin Falconer, Jennifer Probst, Janice Maynard, and Amy Shojai.
Mayer has also written five books in the Nightstalkers series for the Amazon Publishing imprint 47North.
In addition to his writing and publishing career, Mayer has been a speaker at the Maui Writer's Conference. He holds workshops and seminars on the leadership tactics learned in his Green Beret training. He has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Sports Illustrated, PBS, NPR, the Military Channel and the SyFy Channel.[17]
Personal life edit
Bob Mayer lives in Tennessee with his wife and their English Yellow Lab, Cool Gus and their newest addition, Scout the dog.[18] His most recent books include the Time Patrol series, featuring characters from both The Nightstalkers and The Cellar series of books.
Published works edit
- Green Beret series
- 1991: Eyes of the Hammer - (ISBN 9781621250401)
- 1992: Dragon Sim-13 - (ISBN 9781621250418)
- 1994: Synbat - (ISBN 9781621250425)
- 1995: Cut-Out - (ISBN 9780340640241)
- 1996: Eternity Base - (ISBN 9781621250494)
- 1996: Z - (ISBN 9781621250500)
- 2010: Chasing the Ghost - (ISBN 9781935712084)
- 2013: Chasing the Lost - (ISBN 9781621250685)
- 2015: Chasing the Son - (ISBN 9781621251859)
- Area 51 series
- 1997: Area 51 - (ISBN 9781621252184)
- 1998: Area 51: The Reply - (ISBN 9781621252191)
- 1999: Area 51: The Mission - (ISBN 9781621252207)
- 2000: Area 51: The Sphinx - (ISBN 9781621252214)
- 2001: Area 51: The Grail - (ISBN 9781621252221)
- 2002: Area 51: Excalibur - (ISBN 9781621252238)
- 2003: Area 51: The Truth - (ISBN 9781621252245)
- 2003: Area 51: Nosferatu - (ISBN 9781621252252)
- 2004: Area 51: Legend - (ISBN 9781621252269)
- 2018: Area 51: Redemption - (ISBN 9781621253143)
- 2018: Area 51: Invasion - (ISBN 9781621253174)
- 2019: Area 51: Interstellar - (ISBN 9781621253334)
- 2020: Area 51: Earth Abides - (ISBN 9781621253464)
- Nightstalkers series
- Time Patrol series
- 2015: Time Patrol - (ISBN 9781477821879)
- 2015: Black Tuesday - (ISBN 9781503946637)
- 2016: Ides of March - (ISBN 9781530668120)
- 2016: D-Day - (ISBN 9781621252771)
- 2016: Independence Day - (ISBN 9781621252849)
- 2016: Nine Eleven - (ISBN 9781621252900)
- 2016: The Fifth Floor - (ISBN 9781621252993)
- 2017: Valentine's Day
- 2017: All Hallow's Eve
- Black Ops series
- Atlantis series
- Psychic Warrior books
- The Cellar books
- Jim Vaughn books
- Presidential thrillers
- Burners series
- Shadow Warriors series
- Duty, Honor, Country series
- Standalone novels
- Non-fiction
- 2001: The Fiction Writer's Toolkit - (ISBN 9780759214361)
- 2003: The Novel Writer's Toolkit - (ISBN 9781935712299)
- 2005: Who Dares Wins - (ISBN 9781416593089)
- 2005: Hunting Al Qaeda - (ASIN B000K43PSU)
- 2011: Writer's Conference Guide - (ASIN B0052) with Jen Talty
- 2011: Write It Forward - (ISBN 9781935712671) previously published as Warrior Writer
- 2012: The Shelfless Book: The Complete Digital Author - (ISBN 9781935712862) with Jen Talty
- 2012: The Green Beret Survival Guide: For the Apocalypse, Zombies and More - (ISBN 9781621250463)
- 2015: Shit Doesn't Just Happen Volume I: Titanic, Kegworth, Custer, et al. - (ISBN 9781621252078)
- 2015: Shit Doesn't Just Happen Vol II: Challenger, Kursk, Sultana, et al. - (ISBN 9781621252153)
- 2016: Prepare Now Survive Later - (ISBN 9781621253037)
- 2016: Survive Now Thrive Later - (ISBN 9781621253051)
Notes edit
- "Is there gold in your backlist? Self-publish and find out!" by Alan Rinzler Forbes 5/18/11
References edit
- ^ "Summary Bibliography: Bob Mayer". www.isfdb.org. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
- ^ "USMA 1981 - Strength As One, '81". www.west-point.org. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
- ^ "Conference – NEORWA". www.neorwa.com. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
- ^ "Bob Mayer". freshfiction.com. Retrieved 2016-09-15.
- ^ An Unauthorized Guide to Bob Mayer: A Short Biography of the Author of Nightstalkers and Eyes of the Hammer: 2nd Edition.
- ^ An Unauthorized Guide to Bob Mayer: A Short Biography of the Author of Nightstalkers and Eyes of the Hammer: 2nd Edition.
- ^ An Unauthorized Guide to Bob Mayer: A Short Biography of the Author of Nightstalkers and Eyes of the Hammer: 2nd Edition.
- ^ "Conference – NEORWA". www.neorwa.com. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
- ^ An Unauthorized Guide to Bob Mayer: A Short Biography of the Author of Nightstalkers and Eyes of the Hammer: 2nd Edition.
- ^ Lawson, Margie. "How-to Author Interview: Bob Mayer - Margie Lawson". www.margielawson.com. Archived from the original on 2016-04-15. Retrieved 2016-08-04.
- ^ "10 People Who Helped Shape The Future of Modern Publishing | The Independent Publishing Magazine". www.theindependentpublishingmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-08-04.
- ^ "Can't judge romance novel by its steamy cover". 2006-07-28. Retrieved 2016-08-04.
- ^ "Can't judge romance novel by its steamy cover". 2006-07-28. Retrieved 2016-08-04.
- ^ "myRWA : The Romance Genre : Honor Roll". www.rwa.org. Archived from the original on 2016-12-27. Retrieved 2016-09-15.
- ^ "Authors Publishing Authors: How Does it Work?". Archived from the original on 20 October 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2016.
- ^ "The Hybrid Writer: Balancing Traditional and Self-publishing - Publishing Perspectives". 2011-07-25. Retrieved 2016-08-03.
- ^ "10 People Who Helped Shape The Future of Modern Publishing | The Independent Publishing Magazine". www.theindependentpublishingmagazine.com. Retrieved 2016-08-04.
- ^ ""The distance between me and my readers is the internet" -- An interview with Bob Mayer • The Reedsy Blog". 2015-03-03. Retrieved 2016-08-04.
External links edit
- Official website
- coolgus
.com