A radio personality turned standup comedian turned corporate trainer turned horror writer talks craft, character, and the short-story collection that keeps adults awake at night.

Richard Rumple arrived at horror fiction the long way around: radio booth, comedy stage, corporate training room, then retirement and a keyboard. That range shows up in the work.

In this conversation he talks about writing character-driven horror, the collection Gabriella: Tales from the Demon Cat, and the mentorship that taught him to stop describing and start suggesting.

Richard Rumple spent decades entertaining audiences in radio and standup comedy before a career as a corporate training director. He began writing fiction seriously after retiring.

He has published two novels and the short-story collection Gabriella: Tales from the Demon Cat, blending horror with the comic timing he sharpened on stage.

DISCUSS YOUR BOOK

Full transcript of the interview follows.

Richard Lowe: Welcome to author talks with Richard Lowe. I’m here with Richard rumble, who started from a radio personality to stand up comedian to corporate trainer to writer of horror. He’s entertained audiences for decades in one manner or another. With two novels behind him his latest effort, a collection of 13 short stories, travel the journey through the eyes of human monsters and monsters of legend as well.

Magic technology and others. Gabriella Tales from the demon cat may sound like a bedtime book for youngsters, but it has kept many adults from sleeping at night instead. Welcome to the show, Richard.

Richard Rumple: Thank you, Richard, good to be here.

From Radio and Comedy to the Page

Richard: So Richard, how did you get into writing?

Rumple: Actually, I’ve been writing all my life. When I first started reading years and years ago, I wouldn’t go to my mother after reading a book and saying, Why did they finish the book that way? Did she say, Well, if you don’t like the ending, write your own. And I did.

And from that point on, I just kept writing and writing. I wrote my own shows when I was on radio, my own jokes and comedy, wrote my training books, when I was in business. And when I retired last year, I decided it’s time to write it, just really get down to doing them are so

Richard: interesting. Interesting. And what did you do before you were a writer?

Rumple: Directly before I’m the corporate training director,

Richard: okay. Because it says here, you you have done radio and various other entertainment things that sounds fascinating to me.

Rumple: I did radio back in the 70s and 80s. Back when radio was actually radio. You had to show that you had to prepare and do instead of putting everything on heart and all that sort of stuff that they do these days. We’ve kept our own music developed our personality and such. Back to the WK Arpin Cincinnati days basically,

Richard: Wolfman Jack days.

Rumple: You got it? You got it within one scalar where the letters are bringing the letter whether or not you want to hear about the letters. So here’s a letter.

Richard: Probably half of our younger audience is one who’s listening Jack, but they can look them up on the internet. Yeah, that was one of the greats. Definitely. Yep. All right. So. So you were a radio person. And you did other kinds of entertainment as well.

Rumple: Yeah, I actually left the radio industry wanting to stand up comedy. Okay. Actually, I, we had one night at the Comedy lounge, and I got on stage, representing a radio station. The owner of the club asked me to come back that weekend and emcee and from that point on, I was doing it on a constant basis.

hired by an agent like Ron and went out on the road for years, enjoyed entertaining audiences throughout the United States. And it’s a lot of fun.

Richard: Very cool. That sounds like a fun time.

Rumple: It really was. It was spending your life in hotel rooms. It’s fantastic.

Richard: Yeah, I did a lot of traveling between renaissance fairs, put hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of them. So I’m aware of the hotel room phenomenon.

Rumple: Definitely, it’s great to listen to your neighbors every night.

Why Horror, and Writing From Real Experience

Richard: That’s funny. Okay. So you talked a little bit about how you became a writer? Why did you choose the genre that you chose?

Rumple: Well, coming from comedy, it was a natural selection. Actually, I had a lot of personal experiences with paranormal and things along those lines when I was younger. I always wanted to talk about them. When you try to tell people about them, a lot of times they look at you as if you’re totally crazy.

So in turn, I decided that some some of those experience would be related. And that’s what I did with my first novel. But some of the experiences of course, they were expanded upon, but someone has experienced some of my experiences that I went through as a younger individual.

Richard: Okay, you fictionalize them a bit, I bet. Oh, definitely had to change the names to protect the guilty, so to speak, and you’ve got it.

Rumple: You got it. You got to have some semblance of sanity?

Inside the First Novel

Richard: Of course, of course. Of course. Well, why don’t you tell us a little bit about that first novel? What’s it about? And what’s the setting and who are the characters and stuff? I’m sure you’re very familiar with it.

Rumple: Well, the first course. And my first attempt at trying to be a writer, per se. It’s a story of an individual that leaves military service, wants to go back to college, went to households A tremendous deal on a house. And unfortunately find out why it is such a deal after a while.

Other paranormal experiences in the house had some violent Senate a little bit of mild erotica, not heavy, but very, very mild. And talks about some of the social issues that people are going through in this day and age, and not from a soapbox through the actual characters experiencing them.

Things such as how the elderly adjust to how they’re treated as we age. We’ve also had issues in there. You know, how greed and depression do go hand in hand with each other. So some religious experience along those lines. I think also social issues need to be addressed somewhat.

But again, not from a soapbox. People don’t want to be preached Trump for free status. They want to see how other people handle things seem okay, maybe pacing in future and trying to come up with their own plan of action?

Richard: Very cool. It sounds like a cool book. Okay. How long did it take you to write?

Rumple: The first book I actually started in February. And as far as the initial writing, it was a month and a half. You had an ad tech another month and a half after that. And I’m self published. So that took another couple of weeks to get out. I started 20. Since February 7 book was published, I believe it was May 7. It was an experience.

Richard: And how long is it? Look how many words?

Rumple: It’s right at 67. Pass?

Richard: That’s that’s quite an accomplishment.

Rumple: Well, I hated the smell. To be honest, that’s, that’s actually the worst part of writing as

Richard: well as always the sequel.

Rumple: Okay, yeah, man. I tend to become attached to my characters. And I hate to validate them anytime.

Character Development and Emotional Payoff

Richard: So your stories aren’t like the Game of Thrones, or everybody dies at the end? Oh, no. Not everybody. I won’t show oil, of course. And what good memories do you have about your writing experience?

Rumple: Just being able to put things down on paper, actually see them up here before me. I’ve had thoughts for years on fictional books and such. And I’ve always wondered how I can actually put one together and seeing it come together piece by piece. Seeing the characters come alive, I tend to be very, very heavy in character development, because a lot of people either love or hate the characters.

You know that? That meant a lot to be really good. I’ve actually had several people tell me that when one of the characters passed to me, they they cried. And that I know that sounds terrible, but it makes me feel it makes me feel as if I truly were attached to it.

Richard: That’s important that they that they have some feeling for the character that means you accomplish your goal. Definitely. Good. Good. Have you gone? Have you gone on the speaking circuit look, signing circuit or anything like that and had been just getting good experiences that way?

Rumple: No, I really haven’t. I need to, there’s a lot of things that I need to do. Marketing is one of those things I need to do. I tend to be writing for. I need to say no and to read. But you know how that goes. Sometimes when you’re starting out.

My total concentration has been on writing, which is only one aspect of the entire so to speak. I’m working on an individual amount it’s helping me a little bit actually help what that other person has volunteered to help me substantially in the marketing pandemic. And I’m also enrolled in a bootcamp after the beginning of the year.

For more. That’s something that I’m looking forward to. I need to get these books out amongst the public people have read them seem to enjoy them. And a lot of people just don’t know they’re even out there at this point in time.

Richard: Well, that’s the whole point of emotion. Oh, definitely get them out there.

Rumple: I didn’t fancy gear fest here in Lexington, Kentucky, which is a big annual event here. And, you know, it may not be much but it was my first day that ever and that’s kind of SS on 25 books. So I felt very, very good about

Richard: that. It’s very cool. Yeah, those first book selling in the first book signing is a special feeling truly is it’s really, I hope you manage to get somebody to video or take pictures or something.

Rumple: We do have some pictures taken. You know, it was a great event. There was a lot of disappointment and scare fest. Unfortunately, table arrangement was changed at the last minute supposedly turned into back row. And so positioning wasn’t as good as it could have been. But again, I just feel extra grateful and I’ve been able to be there. And

Richard: yeah, I know, I know that feeling I’m attending my first Writers Conference in Tampa. It’ll be my very first one ever. Next month, and I’m making sure that I’m bringing video and going to tell people as they go by, do me video me, you know, take pictures of me and stuff because you can’t get publicity like that. Well,

Rumple: once again, also was it including my wife, and just for the first time ever, when I did combination never saw me perform on stage. I know how long it happened from about her. So I was better than she was. And, in reality, I brought her for all the three days of scare pass, she got to see the people’s reaction.

I take this to her ego a little bit and saying people asked me for my signature and every book that sold, and it’s nice to have her on my side a little bit more. Very,

Promotion, First Signings, and Getting the Name Out

Richard: very cool. I’m sure she likes that. Get being part of things. Yeah, what kind of tips do you have for writers to succeed? Um, you’ve obviously mentioned promotion. And one of the things, a lot of writers get stuck writing the book, how do you how do you suggest people get out of that kind of rut?

Rumple: You know, I’m one of the worst to say that about, I started writing about backgrounds thankee 99, or something, I had about 600 pages found on it. And I never came up with a mandate. External setting on the side somewhere in an old windows 98 type of format, or word or something like that.

But, you know, there’s hotlines, and you can do, I usually start with the end, and then work my way toward that ending. There’s nothing worse than trying to write by the seat of your pants and coming up with nothing at the end, which I’ve done several times on short stories in particular recently.

But the whole thing is kind of on paper. If you don’t never hand on paper, it’s never going to be published. You’re never gonna have anything in front of you that you can be proud of. You’re going to be one of those grandfather’s sitting on your porch when you’re 85 years old, telling your great great grandchildren. Yeah, I could have if I wanted to get it on paper.

Richard: Certainly, yeah, I understand that. That’s, that’s, I’ve got one of those novels. I think it started in 1979. And it’s I’m still working on it. But it’ll, I’m hoping to finish it someday. But I also start from the end. I always write the last chapter first. Of course, by the time I’m done, it changes.

Sure, sure. But at least I know where it’s going. And then I usually jump around and write the scenes that mean more to me. And then finally I have to go through the whole thing and go away to write that.

Rumple: Exactly. I do the same thing. You know, the hardest part is complaining in the book is deciding when to stop rewriting. Yeah. I can make this better, I can make this better, I can make this better. You’ll work out further. So

Richard: exactly. Yeah, my first novel is out there. It’s under a pseudonym. And I read it now. And I gotta wonder why this got 15 five star reviews.

Rumple: I know there are things that I have learned since writing across the alley, I actually participated in a mentor program with horror Writers Association, and had a phenomenal individual Jason V. Brock is my mentor. Jason did a tremendous job, he finds him so to speak. One of the things I was guilty of doing was paying to disperse.

And that’s something that he kind of weaned me away from, he wanted the reader to be able to make their own visuals instead of me trying to be meticulous and pointing out, you know, the hash turn was one and a half inches from the corner of the table.

But to be able to get the reader to really get involved in your book, they do need to create that visual. And I was I was keeping them from doing that. So, Gabriel, on my latest book, The collection of 14 short stories, that after mentorship, and I think some of my best friends. Cool,

Richard: cool. Yeah, I know that I get better as I go. It sounds like you do too.

Rumple: I do. You know, there’s I’m never satisfied with what I do. And I always aim to get better in every possible way. You’ll never attain perfection if you continue to go that route, because it’s only something you can improve upon.

Richard: Exactly. And you said you’re just getting into the promotion. What kind of promotions are you planning on doing?

Rumple: Well, at this point in time, I’m getting out to more book shows. I’ve got another one scheduled here in about two weeks. Right before Halloween and when we can have Halloween, I guess. And there’s another one coming up Comic Con The thing over and over, we’re going to be going to that is, and at this point in time, getting my name out, among other authors is a big thing that’s been taking place here recently.

I knew the authors, I was doing a strictly on my own. You know, there’s, there’s so many people out there that are willing to help you, and to get your book out 40, so to speak, so many different websites that are willing to share. And if you don’t know this stuff, you don’t put it out there.

It’s getting our name out a little bit more than these people are very free with their information. You know, let me just say one thing here, writers are the best group of individuals in the world. They truly are. There’s no competition among us. You know, let me help you do this, let me help you do that.

For every bit of quality writing that gets out in the marketplace. And there’s more people that are willing to read that quality. It’s kind of like comedy was years ago, there was a big burst of comedy back at the time, I got into that excellent. And there was a lot of subpar comedians out in the marketplace.

A lot of comedy clubs die because people got tired of seeing them. I think when self publishing first came around, there was a lot of subpar writing, that basically got in the marketplace. But a lot of those people gave it a try. It didn’t work for them. And now they’re kind of out of the picture.

So the better quality and the self publishing so that you can actually get out there. And the people are appreciating what is being offered at this time.

Richard: In fact, this will be on the fiction masterclass website. And our goal is to do exactly what you said to help other writers. So we’re creating a Facebook group and stuff. And these interviews have turned out to be very useful, because it is a community and unfortunately, a lot of writers don’t realize that our purpose, one of our purposes, is to get writers to understand that it is a community and if you interact, you will be better.

Rumple: Definitely, you know, it’s all about helping each other. Now, I’ve been in so many phases of business, we’re inspect staff. And it’s not a pleasant place to work. Coming into the writing field, and with all the beauty just being so generous in their offerings and such a dream come true. It’s really

Writer’s Block and Linking the Short Stories

Richard: Exactly exactly. Do you suffer from writer’s block at all?

Rumple: At times, Gabriel, Tales from a demon cat earn me out. I have learned since then, but I’m reading Ray Bradbury, and several others, that you never start to write a short story. In its entirety. You write short stories until you find a common theme, which you can file them under.

I did, I decided I’m going to write a short story. So I have not only the 13 stories that have different characters and different plot lines, different antagonists and such. And try not to make any of them sound similar to the others also had the main characters in Hebrew, it’s kind of like a paper, she introduces some tales tells you kind of a little bit of a sarcastic relief in between the stories.

And I got her to create kind of, I have a cat named Gabrielle here that she’s based on. It’s been an interesting and interesting past, I have to understand I’ve had, I tried writing immediately and just couldn’t want to go forward. I don’t really want to talk about them a whole lot right now, because they’re in the early stages.

Of course. One is kind of a combination horror, and the other is a form based on the medical industry. But I just couldn’t do it. This individual and other individuals can help him and Charles Lamb just to be introduced to the writing community. Now started running some short, short stories together.

He’s got a lot of fantastic ideas, and what’s going on, right? So we’re kind of working together on this really back and forth over various stories that I’ve written so far with his influence, or his input, or storylines can help me to get a book compiled here and maybe maybe at the most a month, and get it out on the market.

Richard: So very nice,

Rumple: short story and a fresher somebody else. Their ideas coming into being. It kept me motivated once again, and we’re falling behind and we were sailing up the hill.

What He Loves Most About Writing

Richard: Very cool, very cool. And what would you say your best your favorite thing about being an author is?

Rumple: That’s a good question. Probably the sense of accomplishment and feeling Have you ever handled to take somebody out of the boredom? Now the the hatred out of the mundane? Society provides in this day and age, to put him into a world that they can enjoy. Whether it be a little bit of fear, a little bit of laughter, a little bit less out of character and such, you were able to give them something that they didn’t have before.

Something that made their life a little bit better. Nice writing, how about, you know, if you’re, if you’re only running from yourself, it’s not worth doing. If you’re writing for other people and trying to make their lives better trying to give him something to enjoy. That’s what it’s all about.

It truly is. You know, if you do that, I feel like somebody will be there sooner or later. I’m not worried about that. With retirement, I’ve got my money. I’m not worried about I’m writing to make people have a better way to enjoy the life. And we’ll see where it goes.

Richard: Very cool. Very cool. So we’re coming up on the end, do you have any closing remarks?

Rumple: I, you know, just want to tell all my hands that I truly appreciate everything that they’ve done. Books coming along the way and they won’t be that far in the future by any means. Just have a little bit of patience. And if you’ve haven’t read one of my books, give it a shot.

Give it a shot. You may like it, you may not. If you’re looking for blood colored gets veins and bodies in your teeth. You might find a lot of it in my books, but not a lot. Again, I put some more about the feeling of pride, the building of pride the characters involved and how they deal with it and there are monsters especially and the Gabriel rial Tales from the demon cat.

But I think that if you’re the one that got on Amazon for any of my books, and it was a two star was given to me by a girl that only gave her readings to video games. Okay, so she really is not. She’s looking for the slasher type mentality and my books are not slasher type mentality.

Richard: Understand. Got it. Okay. Well, thank you for appearing on the show and we’ll talk later.

Rumple: Thank you so much for having me. I appreciate it.

Richard: Thank you. This has been author talks with Richard Lowe and this is a weekly series and if you subscribe down below, you will receive weekly notifications. Thank you for coming

Quotable moments

Frequently asked questions

Who is Richard Rumple?

Richard Rumple is a horror and comedy writer who spent decades in radio, standup comedy, and corporate training before turning to fiction in retirement. He is the author of two novels and the short-story collection Gabriella: Tales from the Demon Cat.

What is Gabriella: Tales from the Demon Cat?

It is a collection of thirteen short stories that travel through the eyes of human monsters and monsters of legend, linked by a recurring narrator cat named Gabriella who offers sarcastic commentary between the tales.

What writing advice does Richard Rumple give?

Write toward an ending rather than pantsing with no destination, keep notes on every chapter and character so nothing dangles, and leave visual space for the reader instead of over-describing every detail.

What did Richard Rumple do before writing?

He worked in radio through the 1970s and 1980s, performed standup comedy on the road for years, and served as a corporate training director before retiring and writing full time.