The writer in the white coat: ’78 alumnus pursues longstanding dream to be an author
Robert LaCosta writes inspirational fiction, weaving tales and truth into stories containing glints of wisdom and fact.
Robert LaCosta ’78 spent years building his audiology business, Hear for You, into a multimillion-dollar enterprise. “But I was always a writer disguised in a lab coat,” he explained. Yet between spending time in the exam room, developing the company and raising a family, LaCosta says he didn’t have much time to write.
So after being offered a large buyout in 2009, LaCosta shed his lab gear, sharpened his pencils and launched his own communications company, No Reputation Communications (NRC). Today, he represents and markets himself as a full-time writer.
Once a writer for the College’s student-run newspaper, The Signal, LaCosta now writes inspirational fiction, weaving tales and truth into stories containing glints of wisdom and fact. Through allegory, symbolism and other literary devices, he puts together stories, songs and novels whose meanings go deeper than the surface plot, providing the reader with a profound message.
In his first two books, Like Father, Like Son and The King’s Favorite Book, LaCosta weaves in themes of religion, examining a spiritual relationship with the Judeo-Christian God by comparing it to physical human relationships.
His most recent work, Gamaliel’s Advice, is a historical fiction chronicling the 24-year long Mount Soledad lawsuit that ordered the removal of a cross-shaped veteran’s memorial in San Diego, CA. LaCosta has also written a screenplay of Gamaliel’s Advice.
When speaking of the future, LaCosta is optimistic, looking forward to a time when he can help other writers. “I love the idea of bringing really wholesome literature and songs to our culture,” he says. “I’m hoping that as my writing gets out there, I can start using NRC to market other emerging writers.”
Posted on December 1, 2013