15 Mar 2026 Author of the Month: W. Pat Freeman

By Susan L. Peterson

At 74, W. Pat Freeman jokes that he isn’t sure he has enough years left to write all the stories still swimming around in his head. But if his energetic pace is any indication, he’s giving it his best shot.

Freeman, an author of three books, is a man whose life experiences read almost like a novel themselves. A former reserve deputy sheriff with a black belt in judo, he carries the confident air of someone who has lived widely and learned constantly. He earned an undergraduate degree in Russian studies from the University of Houston and later completed a master’s degree at Reformed Theological Seminary.

His love of languages has followed him across continents. He studied French and German in Geneva and can read and write Latin and Greek, skills that were honed during his seminary years. For 44 years, Freeman worked in the industrial and medical water-treatment field, installing systems around the globe.

Though his professional life was demanding, he always wanted to write. His first book, “A Sea of Glory: Volume I,” was published in 2007. Inspired by his lifelong interest in history and his early dream of becoming a naval officer — a path he was unable to pursue — Freeman focused the book on the attack on Pearl Harbor and its aftermath.

In 2019, he shifted genres with “A Good Blackberry Year,” a mystery novel following junior FBI Special Agent Doug Harper, who returns to his hometown of Texarkana, Texas. Packed with Arkansas references and Southern atmosphere, the story will appeal to local audiences.

Freeman’s newest work, “Interruption and Interference” (2025), continues Harper’s story. This time, the setting moves to Virginia, where Harper “stumbles into a major conspiracy that sends him on a twisted journey he could never have imagined.”

W. Pat FreemanDespite his passion for storytelling, Freeman says the most difficult part of publishing has been the editing. He also admits frustration that most publishing companies offer little help with marketing. “They’re in the business of printing books,” he explained. “The author is the customer — not the public.”

Even so, he remains undeterred. Writing, he says, has become an “expensive hobby,” but one that brings him deep satisfaction. When a story finally takes shape, “the juice flows.” He once wrote a 200-page manuscript in just a week and a half.

In addition to writing, Freeman continues his lifelong calling of “preaching and teaching.” He is also back in the classroom himself, taking advantage of the senior-citizen tuition waiver at the University of Arkansas at Morrilton. He is currently enrolled in accounting and chemistry, which proves that learning has no age limit. In his spare time, he enjoys hunting and can be found sparring at Gillespie Boxing in Conway, which is the city he calls home. 

Freeman and his wife, Karen, an artist, have three sons and five grandchildren. The couple will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary in June, and he hopes to mark the milestone with a trip to Switzerland. Freeman’s books are available through Amazon and other online booksellers — an ever-growing collection from a man who shows no sign of slowing down.