Ray Blackston

Infobox Writer
name = Ray Blackston


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birthplace = Georgetown, South Carolina
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occupation = Novelist
nationality = American
period = 2003 - present
genre = Christian
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influences = Apostle Paul, Frank McCourt, Pat Conroy
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website = http://www.rayblackston.com

Ray Blackston is an award-winningcite web|author=CA Staff|date=2003-09-03|url=http://www.christianactivities.com/articles/story_bookbeat.asp?ID=2822|title=Christian Activities Staff on "Flabbergasted"|accessdate=2007-11-23] Christian novelist. He quit his stock-broking business in 2000cite web|author=Gina|date=2006-11-14|url=http://noveljourney.blogspot.com/2006/11/author-interview-ray-blackston_14.html|title=Novel Journey: Author Interview ~ Ray Blackston|accessdate=2007-11-15] and started writing Christian fiction. He has written five novels; the first three were part of a series which started with his debut, "Flabbergasted" (2003). His latest novel is "Par for the Course", published in 2008.

Biography

Blackston was born in Georgetown, South Carolina. He did his schooling in Texarkana, Texas and obtained a BS degree in Finance and Economics from the

After "Flabbergasted", Blackston wrote two more novels, "A Delirious Summer" (2004) and "Lost in Rooville" (2005). Both utilized the characters from "Flabbergasted". After "Lost in Rooville" was published, Blackston chose the Time Warner Book Group (now called Hachette Book Group USA) to publish his next novel from amongst several publishers who showed interest in publishing his books. His first novel which did not utilize characters from "Flabbergasted", "A Pagan's Nightmare", was then published on October 25, 2006. Blackston has described "A Pagan's Nightmare" as cquote|the last few pagans on earth, running desperately from legalistic zealots who hope to capture and "convert" them

Blackston wrote his next novel, "Par for the Course", cite web|author=|date=|url=http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/cms_content?page=699522&sp=67484&event=67484RNF%7C1023053%7C67484|title=ChristianBook.com - Ray Blackston Christian Fiction|accessdate=2007-11-15] which was released on 2008-02-12.cite web|author=|date=|url=http://www.rayblackston.com|title=Ray Blackston's website|accessdate=2008-02-28] Like his first three novels, the action in "Par for the Course" takes place in South Carolina.

Blackston also serves on the Missions committee of his own church. He has traveled to Ecuador during a summer missions program.

Novels

* "Flabbergasted" (2003), ISBN 978-0-80-071837-4
* "A Delirious Summer" (2004), ISBN 978-0-80-075958-2
* "Lost in Rooville" (2005), ISBN 978-0-80-073057-4
* "A Pagan's Nightmare" (2006), ISBN 978-0-44-657959-9
* "Par for the Course" (2008), ISBN 978-0-44-617815-0

Influences

The author has been known to list the following works as his favorites, which also influenced his writings:

* Works by the Apostle Paul, specifically Ephesians and Philippians
* "Angela's Ashes", Frank McCourt
* "The Water is Wide", Pat Conroy
* "Pilgrim at Tinker Creek", Annie Dillard
* "Bird by Bird", Anne Lamott
* "The Testament", John Grisham
* "Gilead", Marilyn Robinson
* "The Single Truth", Lori Smith

He also states that "Flabbergasted" is amongst his list of favorite books.

References

External links

* [http://www.rayblackston.com/index.htm Ray Blackston dotcom]
* [http://www.faithfulreader.com/authors/au-blackston-ray.asp FaithfulReader.com]
* [http://www.hachettebookgroupusa.com/authors/36/3600/index.html Hachette Book Group USA: The Authors]
* [http://noveljourney.blogspot.com/2006/11/author-interview-ray-blackston_14.html Novel Journey]