Baseballer to bestseller

Paul Phillips, ’82, didn’t plan to go to college. Nobody else in his family had done it, but a clandestine visit to campus led him to baseball coach Howard Fetz’s office and the rest was history.

He joined the Mountaineer baseball team as an outfielder in 1979 and never looked back.

Phillips’ time at EOU led him to a career as an Army officer and a job in the Pentagon, as well as master’s and law degrees. More than that, though, he learned to dream big.

“EOU gave me a good start,” he said. “It gave me the foundation to go forward and do some things. Life would have turned out quite differently if I hadn’t stumbled into the opportunity to attend Eastern, and I’m so very pleased that I did.”

His writing skills grew as a public relations officer for the Secretary of Defense and through a master’s in journalism, but the inspiration for his most successful endeavors came from the courtroom. He’s been a judge in Wyoming since 2017.

Phillips authors a series of legal drama novels that currently rank in the top bestsellers on Amazon. His first, published in November 2020, is titled “Misjudged” and ranked No. 8 of all books on Kindle, and No.1 among legal thrillers and mystery series. It’s the No. 1 legal thriller and No. 1 political thriller in print, as well.

Before it became a hit, though, Phillips’ manuscript got more than 100 rejections from publishers. When it was accepted by Seven River Publishing, they required that he write three more to make a four-part series.

“A year and a half later here we are,” he said.

Like his time at EOU, Phillips stayed the course even when it got rocky.

“I would not have stayed in school if I hadn’t been on the baseball team,” he said. “I was floundering on the education side, and frankly on the baseball field too, but there was a group of guys I enjoyed being part of, and that kept me there while I began to figure out what I wanted to do.”

A few English classes and one key conversation with a professor planted the seeds of Phillips’ law career and entrance into writing. Finishing his undergraduate degree allowed him to progress as a military officer. With a gift to the EOU Foundation, he hopes to nurture the next generation of students and student-athletes.

“Whatever I am, it wouldn’t be the same without the experience I had at EOU,” he said. “The hope is that with a little donation of thanks, there’s another guy or gal out there who doesn’t really know what the future holds, but if you can provide something—facilities, activities, an environment they can learn in—they enjoy some success and failure that will prepare them for what’s ahead.”

Phillips met his wife on campus, too. Ann (ne’e Simmons) Phillips earned her associate degree in 1983. Their daughters enjoy advantages that Phillips never had as a first-generation college student.

“I got a letter after my first year of law school saying most people with my grades don’t finish or pass the bar, but I was working full-time, going to my daughters’ soccer games and dance recitals,” he said. “I didn’t do well in college, but I had no idea what to expect there. People who don’t come from an education-oriented family don’t have an advantage, but if you can get through it and get into life, if you’ve been paying attention, and if you work hard and listen, you’ll find that you can be a success.”

These days, he spends evenings and weekends writing on legal pads or adding thoughts to a Notes app on his phone—progress toward the next installment of his book series.

“I’m writing all the time,” he said. “I’m always making notes about something.”

Rather than writing a mystery from start to finish, Phillips said he skips around, writing a courtroom scene or a more reflective section depending on how he’s feeling. He outlines the plot first, and then creates a draft.

“The hardest part is coming up with an idea,” he said. “Coming up with plots that are realistic and courtroom-centric is the hardest part.”

After he has a draft, he adds twists and revises the storyline. He said he almost always changes the ending. The surprise twist in his second book, “One and Done,” wasn’t part of Phillips’ original outline, but the added drama caught readers’ and reviewers’ attention.

He pointed out that although he draws inspiration from his day job, the comparisons aren’t exact.

I didn’t go into this thinking I’d have three books selling in the top 100 on Amazon, but it happened. Dream Big.

-Paul Phillips, ’82

“I certainly know my way around a courthouse and try to make the books as realistic as possible, but I don’t use any local events or characters,” he said. “I’m not Sam, Gillette is not Custer, but we are sort of the whole of our experiences. I see stuff everyday that could be fodder for books.”

And he plans to continue gathering story ideas for the foreseeable future.

“I enjoy being a judge and serving the people of northeast Wyoming,” Phillips said. “Writing is still a hobby, so I plan to continue doing both. If I gave up the day job, writing would turn into a job and I’m not sure I would enjoy it as much.”

Phillips calls himself an “accidental author,” and he’s also an accidental Mountie. He wasn’t recruited to play baseball. He was visiting campus with a friend, and walked into Howard Fetz’s office. Coach Fetz told him to enroll in classes that fall.

“I showed up in September and spent four years trying to convince him to put me in. If I hadn’t taken that left into his office… Hopefully there are people on campus this year who will encounter those moments that make a big difference in their lives,” he said. “I didn’t go into this thinking I’d have three books selling in the top 100 on Amazon, but it happened. Dream big.”