Richard Paul Evans (born October 11, 1962) is an American author, best known for writing ''

The Christmas Box ''The Christmas Box'' () is an American novel written by Richard Paul Evans and self-published in 1993. A Christmas story purportedly written for his children, the book was advertised locally by Evans, who was working at the time as an advertisin ...

'' and, more recently, the Michael Vey series.

Biography

Evans graduated from Cottonwood High School in Murray City, Utah. He graduated with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

degree from the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

in 1984. While working as an advertising executive he wrote a Christmas story for his children. Unable to find a publisher or an agent, he self-published the work in 1993 as a paperback

novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian ''novella'' meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) facts ...

entitled ''The Christmas Box''. He distributed it to bookstores in his community. The book became a local bestseller, prompting Evans to publish the book in this region. The next year ''The Christmas Box'' hit #2 on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list, inciting an auction for the publishing rights among the world's top publishing houses. Evans signed a publishing deal with

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

, who paid him $4.2 million in an advance. Released in

hardcover A hardcover, hard cover, or hardback (also known as hardbound, and sometimes as case-bound) book is one bound with rigid protective covers (typically of binder's board or heavy paperboard covered with buckram or other cloth, heavy paper, or occa ...

in 1995, ''The Christmas Box'' became the first book to simultaneously reach the number-one position on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list for both paperback and hardcover editions. That same year, the book was made into a

television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

of the same title, starring Richard Thomas and

Maureen O'Hara Maureen O'Hara (; 17 August 1920 – 24 October 2015) was a native Irish and naturalized American actress and singer, who became successful in Cinema of the United States, Hollywood from the 1940s through to the 1960s. She was a natural ...

. Evans has subsequently written 36 nationally best-selling books, including some for children, with conservative

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

themes and appealing to

family values Family values, sometimes referred to as familial values, are traditional or cultural values that pertain to the family's structure, function, roles, beliefs, attitudes, and ideals. In the social sciences and U.S. political discourse, the conventi ...

. His 1996 book ''Timepiece'' was made into a television movie featuring

Naomi Watts Naomi Ellen Watts (born 28 September 1968) is a British actress. After her family moved to Australia, she made her film debut there in the drama '' For Love Alone'' (1986) and then appeared in three television series, '' Hey Dad..!'' (1990), '' ...

James Earl Jones James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...

, and

Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complicated women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Em ...

, as were ''The Locket'' (1998), which starred

Vanessa Redgrave Dame Vanessa Redgrave (born 30 January 1937) is an English actress and activist. Throughout her career spanning over seven decades, Redgrave has garnered numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Television Award, two ...

; ''A Perfect Day'' (2006), which starred

Rob Lowe Robert Hepler Lowe (born March 17, 1964) is an American actor, filmmaker, and podcast host. He made his acting debut at the age of 15 with ABC's short-lived sitcom ''A New Kind of Family'' (1979–1980). Following numerous television roles in ...

and

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

; ''The Mistletoe Promise'' (2016), which starred

Jaime King Jaime King (born April 23, 1979) is an American actress and model. In her modeling career and early film roles, she used the names Jamie King and James King, which was a childhood nickname given to King by her parents, because her agency alread ...

and

Luke Macfarlane Thomas Luke Macfarlane (born January 19, 1980) is a Canadian-American actor and former singer. He is known for playing Scotty Wandell on the ABC television drama '' Brothers & Sisters'' (2006–2011), RAC Agent D'avin Jaqobis on the Space tele ...

; and ''The Mistletoe Inn'' (2017), which starred

Alicia Witt Alicia Roanne Witt (born August 21, 1975) is an American actress, singer and pianist. She first came to fame as a child actress after being discovered by David Lynch, who cast her in '' Dune'' (1984) and ''Twin Peaks'' (1990). Witt had a critic ...

and

David Alpay David Alpay (born 6 October 1980) is a Canadians, Canadian actor, musician and producer, known for playing Mark Smeaton in the Showtime (TV network), Showtime series ''The Tudors'' and Jade in the Epix series ''From (TV series), From''. Early ...

. In the spring of 1997, Evans founded Christmas Box House International, an organization devoted to building shelters and providing services for abused and neglected children. As of 2017, more than 35,000 children had been served by Christmas Box House facilities. Evans, a member of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

, lives in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

with his wife Keri, five children, and one grandson. He founded the group "Tribe of Kyngs" to combat feelings of isolation among men and the belief that "masculinity is no longer valued". Initiation into the group includes a coronation ceremony.

Sexual harassment allegations

In 2018, allegations were made against Evans that he had sexually harassed author

Shannon Hale Shannon may refer to: People * Shannon (given name) * Shannon (surname) * Shannon (American singer), stage name of singer Shannon Brenda Greene (born 1958) * Shannon (South Korean singer), British-South Korean singer and actress Shannon Arrum ...

. Accusations included repeatedly hugging, groping, and kissing her without consent at the Utah-based FanX Convention. In a subsequent interview on KUTV-Channel 2 in Salt Lake City, Evans criticized some in the #metoo movement, stating, "These trends tend to swing too far the other way where innocent men are being caught up in, and we’re in a culture where it’s a war on men.” He told reporter Chris Jones that “there is a war on men" and that men are under attack, oppressed by a changing culture, and are victims of a feminist agenda, adding, "There are books written that say, again, that men should be taken out, that they should account for no more than 10 percent of the population. Well, that makes men feel like Jews in Nazi Germany."

Bibliography

Non-fiction

*''The Christmas Box Miracle: My Spiritual Journey of Destiny, Healing, and Hope'' (2001) *''The Five Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me: About Life and Wealth'' (2004) *''The Five Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me for Women'' (2009) *''The Four Doors'' (2014)

Series

* The Christmas Box *#''

'' (1995) *#''Timepiece'' (1996) *#''The Letter'' (1996) * The Locket *#''The Locket'' (1998) *#''The Looking Glass'' (1999) *#''The Carousel'' (2001) * The Walk *#''The Walk'' (2009) *#''Miles to Go'' (2011) *#''The Road To Grace'' (2012) *#''A Step of Faith'' (2013) *#''Walking on Water'' (2014) *The Broken Road *#''The Broken Road'' (2017) *#''The Forgotten Road'' (2018) *#''The Road Home'' (2019) * Michael Vey *#'' Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25'' (2011) *#'' Michael Vey: Rise of the Elgen'' (2012) *#'' Michael Vey: Battle of the Ampere'' (2013) *#'' Michael Vey: Hunt for Jade Dragon'' (2014)Hunt for Jade Dragon (official website) http://michaelvey.com *#'' Michael Vey: Storm of Lightning'' (2015) *#'' Michael Vey: Fall of Hades'' (2016) *#'' Michael Vey: The Final Spark'' (2017) *#''Michael Vey: The Parasite'' (2022)

Novels

*''Christmas Every Day'', adapted from the

William Dean Howells William Dean Howells (; March 1, 1837 – May 11, 1920) was an American realist novelist, literary critic, and playwright, nicknamed "The Dean of American Letters". He was particularly known for his tenure as editor of ''The Atlantic Monthly'', ...

short story (1996) *''The First Gift of Christmas'' (1996) *''The Last Promise'' (2002) *''A Perfect Day'' (2003) *''The Sunflower'' (2005) *''Finding Noel'' (2006) *''The Gift'' (2007) *''Grace'' (2008), re-released as ''If Only'' (2015) *''The Christmas List'' (2009) *''Promise Me'' (2010) *''Lost December'' (2011) *''A Winter Dream'' (2012) *''The Mistletoe Promise'' (2014) *''The Mistletoe Inn'' (2015) *''The Mistletoe Secret'' (2016) *''The Noel Diary'' (2017) *''The Noel Stranger'' (2018) *''Noel Street'' (2019) *''The Noel Letters'' (2020) *''The Christmas Promise'' (2021) *''A Christmas Memory'' (2022)

Children's books

*''The Christmas Candle'' (1998) *''The Dance'' (1999) *''The Spyglass: A Book About Faith'' (2000) *''The Tower'' (2001) *''The Light of Christmas'' (2002)

References

External links

The Christmas Box House International charity websiteRichard Paul Evans
official website
Winning in the Margins siteRichard Paul Evans' official Wattpad profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Evans, Richard Paul 1962 births American children's writers Latter Day Saints from Utah 20th-century American novelists Living people University of Utah alumni Writers from Salt Lake City 21st-century American novelists American male novelists 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from Utah Cottonwood High School (Murray, Utah) alumni