The writings of a road warrior

Former NEPA resident Artie Fletcher released "Comedy on the Road" last month.

Artie Fletcher Gallery of Sound signings: Sat., Jan. 14, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. (Mundy St., Wilkes-Barre); 4-7 p.m. (330 Laurel Mall Dr., Hazleton). Standup, Fri., Jan. 13, 9 p.m., King’s (49 S. Mountain Blvd., Mountain Top), Joe Ohrin opens; Sat., Jan. 14, 9 p.m., Red Buzzard Pub (28th St./Route 940, Hazleton) Info: nycbadboy.com, books available at Gallery of Sound, amazon.com.

by Nikki M. Mascali
Weekender Editor

Since becoming a comedian, Artie Fletcher’s career has taken him to several countries, more than 200 cities and almost every state. He’s been on TV, has a laundry list of people he’s opened for and hosts “The Artie Fletcher Show” on AM 820 in Tampa, Fla. The former Northeastern Pennsylvania resident can now add “author” to his resume with the recent release of “Comedy on the Road: As Seen Through a Comic’s Bloodshot Eyes.”

“People just think when you start getting recognized from television and commercials, they’re like, ‘Oh my God, look at this guy.’ They don’t understand the struggle,” Fletcher said from his home in St. Petersburg, Fla. “They don’t understand the disappointments, what you sacrifice in getting there. Getting rejected constantly, having agents and managers lie to you, they don’t get it. I’m very proud of the book.”

Fletcher will celebrate the release of “Comedy on the Road” Friday and Saturday, Jan. 13-14 with performances and book signings in Wilkes-Barre, Mountain Top and Hazleton. The book was ghostwritten by Dan Maduri, who is part of Fletcher’s radio show.

“He’s incredible, incredible writer,” Fletcher shared. “So I would dictate. I wrote the book, I wrote the outline, I wrote the chapters … we would record them, and then he would ask me questions.”

The idea for the book is one that Fletcher has been working on since 2000, when he had a deal with a publisher that went under following Sept. 11. It wasn’t until Maurice Starr stepped in that “Comedy on the Road” was able to come to fruition. Starr is best known for working with New Edition and New Kids on the Block in the ’80s.

“We have the same lawyer, and (Starr) goes, ‘Why don’t you sign with my company?’” Fletcher recalled. “So I signed with him because, I mean, the guy’s got 19 Grammys.”

After about two and a half years in the making, the book came out Dec. 19 and is available on amazon.com and all Gallery of Sound locations. If there’s one lesson Fletcher wants readers to learn from “Comedy on the Road,” it would be persistence.

“Never give up on your dreams,” he began. “Don’t listen to people who are jealous or negative — stay away from negative people. Work hard, listen to people who know what they’re talking about, people who have a proven track record, and just don’t give up. Work harder.”

Despite being content about where he is now, there is one thing Fletcher would have done differently.

“When I got out of college, I would’ve become a comic immediately because I would have had my own TV show by now,” he said. “I came close, I had a developmental deal with Fox, but after Sept. 11, that fell through. But I never gave up, I just never gave up.”