A former sportswriter, Mike Baldwin spent most of his career at the Oklahoma City newspaper. Before he transitioned to becoming a full-time novelist, Mike won national awards during a sportswriting journey that took him to 80 pro sports venues and 50 college campuses.
A wide array of beats included the Kevin Durant-led Oklahoma City Thunder; Bob Stoops’ OU Sooners and Oklahoma State teams coached by Eddie Sutton, Les Miles and Mike Gundy.
The highlight was when The Oklahoman moved Mike and his family to Dallas. For seven seasons, Mike covered the Dallas Cowboys in the 1990s during the Barry Switzer era when legendary owner Jerry Jones’ roster included future Hall of Famers Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin and Deion Sanders.
Mike covered Super Bowls, Final Fours and the NBA playoffs and he cherishes his early years when he was the newspaper’s lead high school reporter. Over the years, Mike covered so many buzzer-beaters and miraculous comebacks, he said it would be impossible to rank his most memorable games.
“The deafening roar of 18,000 rabid fans packed inside an arena or 75,000 fans in a football stadium has been compared to a jet airliner taking off,” Mike explained. “The adrenalin rush is indescribable, the best perk of the job I never took for granted.”
That was Mike’s first career. The past six years, Mike has written three novels, including two mysteries that feature Veronica Townsend, a tenacious sports agent compelled to solve two murders to honor one of her all-time favorite clients.
Mike recently completed his third book. Twenty-four short stories in JOY ROBBERS feature fictional characters in an upbeat, motivational book. A diverse cast ranges in age from 10-year-old Johnny’s day at an amusement park to Leon, an 87-year-old African American World War II vet playing chess in the city park.
Away from his computer, Mike is an avid golfer. He was humbled and honored his alma mater, Oklahoma Christian University, inducted him into its Sports Hall of Fame (class of 2015).
Additional insight into Mike’s thoughts on his writing style, the literary industry, his sportswriting career is available in the Q&A section, questions spotlighted on book review sites when Mike was promoting his second book, “DREAM KILLER.”