First-time novelist produces humorous fiction at its finest

When Schichter was 15 and his family moved to Saint-Laurent he already had developed an interest in writing at a young age. In elementary school, he created captions for people and animals in his coloring books. While attending Saint-Laurent High and then Sir Winston Churchill, he advanced to writing existential poetry to impress the girls.

After his university studies, stints in Europe and California, and lots of part-time jobs, Schichter became a high school teacher, teaching English and Special Education. In 1986, he received a Masters Degree in Creative Writing from Concordia University.

…and then along came Rudy! was his thesis. “Rudy is my first published novel,” said Schichter, noting that the great satirists influenced his work.

The story chronicles the youthful ambition of Rudy Petinsky, a Jewish New Yorker fresh out of college, who has a lot of growing up to do. Brash and impatient, Rudy is consumed by his fantasy of becoming an overnight success as an author. He is not picky: either a Hollywood screenplay deal or a New York Times bestseller will do!

Reality keeps slapping Rudy in the face and his struggle to make it is followed: traveling around the world, getting odd jobs to make ends meet and trying desperately to get some sex on the side. Throughout, he must juggle complications from his demanding mother, superficial sister and an infuriatingly successful brother-in-law. Thrown in the mix is an array of colorful characters, ranging from crank editors to cranky judges and from shrinks and asylum patients to not-so-happy hookers and Hollywood wannabes.

According to critics ...and then along came Rudy! has the straight-ahead innocence of My Big Fat Greek Wedding while capturing the energy and quirkiness of The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz. The novel promises laughter with a charming mélange of twists and turns.

Schichter spent many years trying to get his work in print. Publishers loved the work but stated it "wasn't the right time."

After he moved to Waterloo, Ontario in 1997 he tried again to sell “Rudy” to publishers. In late 2005, he read an article in the local newspaper about an up-and-coming Canadian publishing house. Schichter sent in his manuscript to ‘Loon in Balloon’ in late 2005, hoping that it was “the right time.”

By February 2006, Schichter finally received an offer. Exactly one year later the book made press.

…and then along came Rudy! a dream that was 30 years in the making, was launched in spring 2007.