Brown, Conrad N. 1934-

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Brown, Conrad N. 1934-

PERSONAL:

Born March 28, 1934, in Bartlesville, OK; son of Nagel (a construction engineer) and Lelah (a florist and painter) Brown; married Marilyn Thomas (a quilter), August 1, 1987; children: Conrad N. III, Ana Melisa, David Stuart. Ethnicity: "Anglo Saxon." Education: University of Kansas, B.A., 1958. Hobbies and other interests: Water activities.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Ft. Myers, FL. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Architect. Self-employed architect, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 1968-1979; self-employed charter boat captain, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, 1979-1983; self-employed architect, Eureka Springs, AR, 1984-87; architect/construction manager, Ft. Myers, FL, 1990-2000; writer, Ft. Myers, 2000—. Military service: U.S. Navy, 1958-63; became lieutenant (junior grade); Merchant Marines officer.

MEMBER:

Antique & Classic Boat Society.

AWARDS, HONORS:

First place, Gulf Coast Writer Association, 1996, for nonfiction article.

WRITINGS:

Gold Bars: Chartering Your Boat for Money, Shipyard Press (Miami, FL), 2005.

Former columnist, Architect Magazine, 1994-97.

SIDELIGHTS:

Conrad N. Brown is an American architect. Born in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, on March 28, 1934, Brown is the son of a construction engineer and a florist/painter. He earned a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Kansas in 1958 and immediately joined the U.S. Navy, leaving the service in 1963 with the rank of a lieutenant junior grade. After a few years, Brown settled in San Juan, Puerto Rico, as a self-employed architect, remaining there until 1979. At that point he began skippering a charter boat operation based in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. Brown returned to working in the field of architecture after relocating to Eureka Springs, Arkansas, in 1984. In 1990 he moved to Ft. Myers, Florida, working as an architect and construction manager. He served as a columnist for Architect magazine from 1994 to 1997. He also won first place from the Gulf Coast Writer Association in 1996 for a nonfiction article he wrote.

In 2000 Brown retired from his career as an architect and pursued writing full time. Brown published his first book, Gold Bars: Chartering Your Boat for Money, in 2005. The book acts as an operating manual for those interested in working in the charter boat industry.

Using examples from his own experience, Brown shows how he was successful in the business and how others can do it as well. A contributor to the Midwest Book Review "enthusiastically recommended" Gold Bars to "anyone interested in being a boat captain" and making a living off of it.

Conrad N. Brown told CA: "I began writing in college and channeled my writing into technical articles and architectural subjects. The desire to write professionally began to exert uncontrollable influence on my daily activities until I had no choice but to put thoughts on paper.

"My interests have always been split between architecture and boats. I've nearly always had a boat and cannot walk past a new or old building without looking it over thoroughly and critically, to both learn and criticize.

"My writing has always been focused on the reader, and I tend to write things directed to a specific market. I like to have my work appreciated and sold. I always write about things I've known, exploring different angles that are often overlooked. Writing for me is both an outlet and a retreat from the everyday pressure of the world."