Today we’d like to introduce you to Ron Whittington.
Ron, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I recently won a 2025 Royal Palms Award from the Florida Writers Association for my most recent Parker Glynn thriller, In Disguise of the Storm. I’ve worked as a ghost writer on two national best-selling books and was a prolific freelance writer for many years with several regional publications including Texas Business, Texas Monthly, Jacksonville Magazine, Beson Publications and The Florida Times-Union. ( The History Press just signed me to a publishing contact and a compliation of these articles will be coming out next spring in a book entitled ‘Hidden Jacksonville.’)
I released my first book of fiction in 2010 with the introduction of ‘businessman-turned-spy’ Parker Glynn in Second Strike, which takes place in the months after the 9/11 attacks. This was followed by Doppelgänged in 2012, Free Surface Effect in 2017 and the newly released In Disguise of the Storm — all published by Ingram Books. I’ve also released two short stories featuring Glynn: The Devil You Don’t and Seized Desires. Both were released as e-books and are only available on this website.
Born and raised in Atlanta, I received a journalism degree from Georgia State University and started my writing career as a reporter with CNN Radio in Atlanta, followed by a move to Dallas to join the Dallas-Fort Worth Business Journal as a reporter and researcher.
I entered the public relations profession in 1986 when he joined the Dallas Chamber of Commerce as a media relations manager. Since that time, I has been a publications editor and media manager for Dallas Area Rapid Transit, served as the Olympic Information Officer for the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transportation Authority during the Centennial Olympic Games. In Jacksonville, I also served as media spokesman for Jacksonville s electric authority, JEA, and Visit Jacksonville, the city s tourism agency. I also served as a field public information officer for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, periodically assigned to disasters throughout the U.S.
In total, my career also includes managing three public relations consulting firms I founded: WhittCom, Inc. in Atlanta and Whittington & Associates, LLC, and Whittington PR in Jacksonville, Florida, where I continue working in the public relations industry today. I previously worked with London-based Mulberry Marketing as a senior account representative and as an account director for the Tampa-based firm PRmediaNow from 2016 – 2020.
I continue to provide public relations consulting and will begin working on another fiction book in early 2025 based on growing up in the 1970s in Atlanta.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Certainly everyone is going to overcome challenges in any profession. I was fortunate to be hired immediately after college graduation by CNN Radio in Atlanta, but after two years there I would move to a new city to continue as a journalist, which was followed by an intense media relations job in constructing the light rail system in Dallas, followed by a move back to Atlanta to work the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta – also handling media relations after the bombings at Olympic Park. Then, starting a business in Atlanta, moving that to Jacksonville, and continuing my public relations career at JEA, Visit Jacksonville and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) while transitioning to a writing career. The ups and downs of working in corporate, being laid off, then the recessions you have to deal with as a consultant, and sometimes as a full time employee — these are all part of our growth individually and professionally. You have to learn to be flexible, pivot and change directions when necessary to success and stay current with technology, while not losing faith in yourself and your ability along the way.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I mentioned earlier that I began writing around 2008, which I’m becoming more known for in the region, but I’m probably better known as a public relations consultant — which has brought me into contact with many news makers and business leaders in Northeast Florida. I’m most proud of winning the award from the Florida Writers Association this year — 15 years after my first book was published and the first of four books to be selected for nomination…and become an award winner.
What sets me apart: tenacity and not giving up on my dream — and balancing that against my full time job in public relations.
What matters most to you?
My God and my family always come first.
In my business, finding good stories to tell, discovering different ways to tell those stories in an entertaining way for readers — and being as accurate as possible in my nonfiction writing.
Pricing:
- Book pricing: $14.99 each
- PR pricing: $85 to $125 an hour
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.ronwhittington.com
- Instagram: @ronthefictioneer
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ron.whittington.9
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ron-whittington-apr/
- Twitter: @rpwhittington.com
- Youtube: @ronwhittingtonthrillers
