From a crew member of the phenomenal hit AMC TV series, The Walking Dead, comes an inspiring book from one of the few people to witness the greatest survivor story ever told from mere inches away;  the Boom Operator, Robert K. Maxfield.  The Boom Operator – A Conspiring Journey to Achieve Heroic Proportions, includes his personal discoveries through 30 plus years in radio, TV, and motion picture production, where he worked with over 30 award-winning actors, directors and producers.  From his personal apocalypse, his philosophies of going beyond survival, exclusive interviews with famous cast members, to behind-the-scenes stories of the show that has shattered all cable TV records, The Boom Operator – A Conspiring Journey to Achieve Heroic Proportions is a personal memoir that utilizes heroic Hollywood story telling principals to help turn ordinary humans into their own personal heroes.

Like Rick Grimes, (actor Andy Lincoln) from The Walking Dead, who woke up in a hospital in the midst of a zombie apocalypse, Robert awoke to the abrupt annihilation of his role as a husband, parent, and son-in-law.  He was devastated by his wife’s affair with a known producer, an agonizing divorce, and a long child-custody battle that cost him his job, his health, his auto, his home, bankruptcy, and that which was most precious to him, the opportunity to raise his daughter.  For two years all he could do was survive.

But, along with medical, mental, physical, and spiritual therapy, Robert found inspiration in his own backyard…filmmaking.  He realized that the film sets where he works every day provided the most prolific life learning experiences one could ever ask for.  He was inspired by the characters and structure within one of Hollywood’s most notable guides to storytelling…The Hero’s Journey, from  Joseph Campbell’s, The Hero with a Thousand Faces.  Campbell’s mythical characters are in every one of us.  In his words, “a hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man”.  Movies and TV shows teach us that everyone is meant to be a common hero, to thrive beyond survival, and to give back to their friends, family, and the world.

Robert learned during his period of destitution, that at some point we all find ourselves trapped in some sort of weird 3D rat maze, and, all any of us really want is to find our own sweet and savory cheese of life.  With The Boom Operator – A Conspiring Journey to Achieve Heroic Proportions, readers will discover their own unique character, write their own plot line, and navigate their unique pathway to the most delectable cheese in their universe.  Best of all, they get to learn a lot about Hollywood storytelling, recording sound on The Walking Dead, and tricks and techniques that filmmakers use to create heroic characters of all kinds.

The Boom Operator – A Conspiring Journey to Achieve Heroic Proportions includes famous interviews with producers like The Walking Dead’s Robert Kirkman, and various other members of TWD Family.  There are movie references, on-set experiences, and anecdotes.  Readers will identify their own life’s mentors, allies, enemies, shadows, and guardians. They will learn how their personal rat maze is really no different than a screenplay with thresholds, inmost caves, calls to adventure, battles to overcome, and magic elixirs.  Ultimately, they will learn to write and direct the heroic story of their own lives. Their story will be full of their own passions, people, dreams, and purpose of giving back to friends, family, and the world.  Turning ordinary surviving humans into their own personal heroes is what this book is all about.