Franklin native publishes first novel, available today

Gregory Haydel has lived in Franklin his entire life.
He said that most people who know him, or have known him, wouldn’t believe that he is an author. But, it is true.
Haydel’s first novel, No Phones in Heaven, is set to be tentatively released on Friday, through Amazon.
The novel professes itself as a story that will “make you laugh, cry, and wish for a miracle.”
It is 244 pages long, and tells two stories of two different families; and their struggles through tragedy and sorrow, aided by the power of hope, prayer, and love.
Haydel said the book, after its release on Amazon, will also be available on Apple Books, and in Barnes and Noble and Books-a-Million stores, with an eye to stores like Walmart, Target and Costco, sometime in the future.
“I had two people read it,” Haydel said, “my sister and my wife, and I asked them, can you give me a judgement on this (the book) on a scale of one to 10?
“Both of them gave me an eight.”
He finished the novel in 2018, but said the editing process took almost a year, with 11 review copies sent back and forth from his editor at Page Publishing.
Haydel has been a tugboat captain for almost 40 years, and plans to retire on Oct. 23.
He said he started writing poetry when he was a teen, putting into words his feelings for the girls he was dating.
He then went on to be a drummer in music groups whereby the poetry from his teenage years became the lyrics to the songs they wrote.
He said he continued writing poetry, which led him to write short stories.
Then, seven years ago, he had a close friend pass away.
“So, I wrote the poem, No Phones in Heaven,” he said, “and I turned that into a story.”
He went on to say that his second novel, Millions on the Bayou, is currently in production.
He stated that in 2000, he decided to enter a contest wherein the applicants could send movie scripts to Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, that one chosen script would be optioned for production into a movie.
Haydel wrote the script for MOTB for submission to the contest, and when it was returned to him, though he did not win the contest, the notes on the script’s plot were positive, which made Haydel hopeful.
He then decided to turn the movie script into a novel, which he reported should be out next year.
MOTB, purportedly a gritty crime drama, Haydel said is unlike No Phones in Heaven in almost every way.
He also said he wants to write a children’s book called, Carly the Crawfish, but thinks he should finish MOTB first.
Among his favorite authors are Glenn Beck and John Grisham, and Haydel expressed that he is thinking of sending a copy of NPIH to Ron Howard, to see if he might want to turn it into a motion picture.
He disclosed that he regrets not dedicating NPIH to anyone, as is customary for authors to do. But, he added, “I would like to have dedicated it to anyone who is going through a grieving process, to say that, ‘There is hope, and if you live righteously for God, there is a possibility to see your loved ones again in Heaven.’”
Hayden concluded by saying that he wanted to thank his wife, Peggy, who was instrumental in getting NPIH to a publishing house.