by April Scheinoha
Reporter
David Filpula always wanted to write a fiction book. When he turned 60, he realized it was now or never. Filpula never expected that he would write four books in a 10-year period.
It all started innocently when the 1971 Middle River High School graduate began writing the fantasy book “Our Brain.” “It was really the hardest thing I ever did in my life,” he said.
Filpula decided to self-publish the book since he would otherwise have to procure the services of an agent to shop his book around to publishing houses. Even though he self-published the book, it doesn’t mean he didn’t spend a substantial amount of time editing the book. As a first-time author, Filpula was astounded by the amount of time he spent editing his work even before the professionals took over.
After finishing the book, Filpula took a year off from his writing hobby. But the itch needed to be scratched again. He felt he needed to write a sequel, so he wrote “Our Other.” After finishing his second book, Filpula felt he had another book in him. Called “Our Heart,” the third book completes the trilogy that is now known as “The Honeygate Chronicles.” And now he has written a book of poetry titled “Unbathed Brains: Poems from Minnesota and the Milky Way.”
Readers have told him that his books are different than anything they’ve read in the past. Filpula is happy to hear that comment because that was his goal.
He’s also encouraged by a recent accomplishment with “Unbathed Brains.” In mid-July, it reached the #1 spot in the Amazon.com rankings of “New Releases on Poetry About Nature.”
The book includes a poem titled “Thief River Falls, Minnesota.” The idea came to Filpula while he was visiting his late parents, Raymond and Nina, when they lived in the city. At the time, he was walking on the bridge over the Red Lake River dam. He noticed the ripples flowing backward from the dam. Filpula recalled being mesmerized by the image, which was filled with metaphors of the past and present. He even found a way to use the word “prowler” in his poem. At the end of the poem, the reader realizes the status of the narrator’s life.
While “Unbathed Brains” is Filpula’s first poetry book, he has been writing poetry since the early 2000s. Filpula, a resident of Bethesda, Md., began writing poetry in earnest around 2005.
Before readers start searching for Filpula’s bibliography, they should realize he writes under the pen name Hari Hyde. Filpula prefers to keep his hobby and professional life separate. He came up with the name after looking at his visage in the mirror. Noting he is a bald fellow with scruffy hair, he thought he looked like a hairy hide. Filpula changed the spelling and Hari Hyde was born.
It has yet to be determined whether Hari Hyde will publish another book., but never say never. Filpula said, “Maybe the urge will strike me someday.”
“Unbathed Brains” can be found on Amazon.