Interview With Author Steve Dunn
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I spent four decades in the newspaper business before I retired and moved to Des Moines, Iowa, in 2014. I worked as a reporter, sportswriter and managing editor for daily and weekly newspapers in three states, including the last fifteen and a half years as managing editor of the Daily Gate City in Keokuk, Iowa.
I have written four books: What a Ride, a collection of columns I wrote for the Daily Gate City and Hancock County Journal-Pilot in Carthage, Illinois; Engaged: Pat Deluhery and the Golden Age of Democratic Party Activism, a political memoir of former Iowa state Sen. Pat Deluhery ; “Principal Park: A Diamond in the Rough,” a history of professional baseball at the confluence of the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers in Des Moines; and Pug, Fireball and Company: 116 Years of Professional Baseball in Des Moines, Iowa, which traces the history of professional baseball in Iowa’s capital dating back to 1887.
I have also written 12 bios and 13 game stories for the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR).
My wife Cindy and I have two daughters, two sons-in-law and four grandchildren. In my spare time, I like to ride my bike over central Iowa’s vast trail system, play pickleball, fish, research baseball, go to Iowa Cub games and pops concerts by the Des Moines Symphony, and work with students at a Des Moines elementary school.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Pug, Fireball and Company: 116 Years of Professional Baseball in Des Moines, Iowa. I am a baseball historian and lifelong Chicago Cubs fan. The Iowa Cubs based in Des Moines have been the triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs since 1981. After moving to Des Moines, I ushered for the Iowa Cubs for six seasons. My book about the history of professional baseball at the confluence of the Des Moines and Raccoon Rivers dates back to 1947 when professional baseball was brought back to Des Moines. My latest book is a follow up to that book and is meant to be the definitive account of Des Moines’ professional baseball history, which includes the likes of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Bob Feller and Satchel Paige.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Not that I know of. I try to do a lot of research before writing a book or an article for SABR. The website newspapers.com is an invaluable resource.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Any books about the Chicago Cubs. Author Doris Kearns Goodwin.
What are you working on now?
Promoting my latest book through book fairs, book signings, podcasts, magazine reviews, radio interviews and word of mouth.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Go to pugfireballandcompany.com to find out more about the book and myself. There are lots of other features about professional baseball in general on the website. I also have an author’s website at stevedunnauthor.com and a blog at dunnsteve.wordpress.com.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Hang in there!
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Most authors don’t get rich!
What are you reading now?
An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s by Doris Kearns Goodwin.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Finish a biography of the late Elvin Tappe, a catcher and coach for the Chicago Cubs during the 1950s and 1960s for SABR. Continue to invite guests to my new podcast called Pug, Fireball and Company at https://www.youtube.com/@SteveDunn-o9i.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
A book by Doris Kearns Goodwin, any book about the Chicago Cubs that I don’t already have and the Bible.
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