Martin Drapkin

Martin Drapkin was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He moved to Madison to attend graduate school at University of Wisconsin-Madison (in English Education) and never left. He intended to be a high school English teacher, but never did that. Instead, he spent his professional life as a state government employee working in criminal justice training. He worked for many years for the Wisconsin Department of Justice as the coordinator of the state’s program for training county jail officers. In that capacity, he authored several professional books and articles on jail issues, including a well-received book on management of inmates with mental disorders. He retired in 2012.

Martin developed an interest in writing fiction a few years before his retirement. He has not specifically studied creative writing, but has family ties in that regard inasmuch as a second cousin, Nat Hiken, was a famous TV writer in the 1950s and 1960s (Sergeant Bilko; Car 54, Where Are You?).

Martin’s first novel, Now and at the Hour, was based upon his experiences working in a state institution for developmentally disabled people, in which one of his charges was a boy who was tragically brain-damaged in a sports accident. His second work of fiction, Ten Nobodies (and their somebodies), reflects his interest in history (perhaps “fractured” history), with imagined “nobodies” who worked for or otherwise served famous people in history, such as William Shakespeare. Davy Crockett, Lewis Carroll, President Taft, Marilyn Monroe, and Meyer Lansky.

In his third work of fiction, The Cat Tender, Martin combined his interests in weddings, cats, and lonely, ambivalent people.

Martin is also a long-time photographer. He was a wedding photographer for many years, and loved that—particularly the receptions. He also likes photographing people at street fairs and festivals. He has had a number of exhibits of his photos, and plans to publish several photography books.