Jaime Buckley in Wanted Hero

"Jaime’s commitment to teaching kids how to be better people is inspiring.

He manages to teach heroism and other niceties through his fiction so that his readers don’t even realize they’re learning. That’s the best kind of teaching and it’s rare. I’m not sure I’ve met anyone like him and there’s probably a reason for that.
So, get to know him – you won’t regret it."

My dad, Jaime Buckley, is probably one of the most genuine personalities you'll meet online. As a father of 13 hereditarily passionate and driven children, his heartfelt visions for their future not just in business but in life have nuanced themselves throughout the work of his professional career. As a professional illustrator for over 30 yrs, game creator, podcaster, author of 25 books, 13 comics, and 2 graphic novels, his goal in this was to create worthwhile heroes for children to emulate in a world where true heroes are hard to find.

He launched WantedHero in 2005 and received 750,000 visitors from 60 different countries, all by word of mouth, in the first 10 months. This business being founded on the fantasies that began to bud and bloom in his youth was a reminder that he had pursued illustration in the beginning wanting to see others achieve their dreams and goals as much as he desired to reach his own. And in the 1,000+ articles, he's written since 2006, and more than 500 clients giving 100% 5-star ratings in the past 3 yrs, these values have never undergone reduction or minimizing. At the heart of all his success, in the firm hard ground underneath his most epic and humbling setbacks, the essence of my father's work has always been a love for people. intrinsic value for the soul of an individual. My daddy, my favorite storyteller, has dreamt up a million dissimilar ways to teach me that every human being has infinite worth.

~ Asia Buckley

Background

On May 27th, 1969, Oakland California went to hell. Some say it was because Jaime Buckley was born...others just decline to answer. Either way, a curious and creative mind was born, and the world as we know it would never be the same. A quiet kid growing up, all Jaime really wanted to do was draw. From the early age of 2 years old, his mother would set him in his highchair, arm him with paper and crayons, then stand back as he crafted his accurate renditions of Big Bird, Cookie Monster, and other characters from Sesame Street. That obsession for drawing never stopped. Graduating high school with honors and a scholarship to college at age 15, he turned to street art instead--running from mall rent-a-cops while doing caricatures of couples, selling them for $4 each. Hey, being 15 and making $75-$150 a day didn't seem too shabby at the time. Jaime never did go to college. Instead, he followed a series of opportunities as he grew older, collecting an unusual array of skills along the way.

Boy Meets Girl

The late 80's brought a new set of challenges. It wasn't just that Jaime couldn't figure out the Rubik's Cube or buy enough batteries for his Walkman. People had to blow on Nintendo cartridges to get them to work, suffer through confusion as Smurfs referred to themselves as a noun, verb, adjective, and adverb, and don't forget the "OH CRAP!" moment when Luke Skywalker found out his dad was the bad guy. On top of all these first-world problems, a severe car wreck left Jaime homeless, jobless and forced him to move back into his parents' house at 20 years old, unable to use his hands. Luckily the Universe had plans for the wounded artist...and it manifested in the form of the perfect female, named Kathilynn.

Microwave version:

They met. They went out on a single date. They got engaged a week later...followed by marriage 10 months after that.

On May 1st 2019, they had their 13th child, and are still happily married, surrounded and loved by a multitude of grandbabies.

If you ask Jaime, he'll tell you that he worked hard all his life to be a good person so that he might deserve someone as wonderful as Kathilynn. He has no idea what she did wrong to tick off the Universe and get HIM, but that wasn't his problem.

Wanted Hero is born

Since the birth of his first child, Jaime had started telling stories of an accidental hero, Wendell P. Dipmier. Stories of adventure, based on his own life experiences with a magical (and comical) twist. At first, these stories were told to his children. Then the stories were shared, even asked for...going from family to friends, to strangers. Those stories eventually turned into comic books. Though Jaime's dream had always been to work for Marvel, DC or Image comics...it never came to fruition. Instead, Jaime's father suggested he take his comic book ideas to a newly emerging fad called the 'internet'.

With a handful of library books and the money he'd won in a single jackpot pull of a slot machine (true story), Jaime created WANTED HERO the website. This website, though basic in design, catered to readers and sold traditional comic books in PDF format for ¢.97 each. Each comic even had a legal clause, telling readers they could print off and share as many copies as they liked, so long as they did not alter, or resell the comic. By the end of the first year, Wanted Hero had more than 750,000 visitors come to the website. This included more than 27,000 signups to the message board (with 15,000 active users), and readers of the comics in 60 countries. This was done by 100% word-of-mouth...and Jaime, to this day, doesn't have a clue how that even happened.

Podcasts, Novels, Games, and more...

As the comics gained popularity, Jaime wanted to share the experience with youth and other creators...so he started buying sound equipment. By the end of 2006, Wanted Hero Radio Network (WHRN) was born--a fictional station from Clockworks City bringing you the best in audio programming. Jaime recorded lessons, shared stories, and his oldest daughter (14 at the time) came up with her own show idea, where she could interview the fictional characters of the comics (see Rappin' it Up' with Ditto and Cosmo).

By 2009, the adventures of Wendell P. Dipmier had become a fantasy novel series, with several offshoot series featuring characters like Höbin Luckyfeller. Fans also started contacting the author, asking permissions to develop games and merchandise based on the fantasy storyline.

Jaime had realized that his love for storytelling had no bounds. His own children had grown up with fictional characters as siblings and now even the grandchildren sought time with 'Papa' to hear the adventures of Wendell, Morphiophelius Smith (a.k.a. Chuck) and Dax. Each time a book was completed, he'd end up with a list of fresh new ideas, all eventually linking back to the main storyline. Truth was, the expanding world of Wanted Hero showed no sign of stopping anytime soon. So why bother trying, right?

Book #1 has held a Top 20 spot on Amazon for 3 YEARS!

You can grab the first book, Prelude to a Hero, absolutely free through WantedHero.com or your favorite retailer.
(Don't forget to leave a review!)

So What's Next?!?

In 2019, with his hands healed and the encouragement of his entire family, Jaime Buckley went back to crafting Wanted Hero full time. Three days after that decision, he discovered the WorldAnvil platform...allowing him to bring 29 years of notes to life. So stay tuned. There's a lot more to come...

"Any time I’m feeling down or unmotivated all I have to do is hop over here and it’s like happiness caffeine. (Must. Get. Jaime. Fix.) Jaime is hands-down one of the most talented, encouraging and downright fun people I’ve ever had the pleasure of getting to know. I refer to him as my muse because every time we chat, or I read something he’s written, it inspires me to go create something amazing. He has a way of bringing out the best in people just by being his outrageously hilarious self. His writing is way too entertaining, though…I’m not getting any sleep lately because it’s too hard to put his books down and go to bed!"
— Mandie Sanders

"Jaime is an amazingly talented storyteller, artist, and illustrator. The first time I saw his work I was blown away — and he’s only gotten better since! Graphic novel fans, check out WantedHero …super fun, and with a character called the BookWorm you might recognize…"
— Barry Eisler, New York Times & International Best Selling Author

"Jaime Buckley is an amazing creative talent. His stories. His art. The worlds he creates. All his creative endeavors are awesome. And he’s the hardest working man I know. But you know what really sets Jaime Buckley apart? He’s the most genuine human being you’ll likely find. Add that to his dependability and you have yourself a rockstar talent."
— Jon Filitti, Out Of This World

"Jaime Buckley is a writer with the ability to both challenge and inspire his readers with words of wisdom and insight. His humor, his love for family, and his desire to encourage permeate his writing in a way that leaves me wanting to come back for more. There are so many excellent authors and so little time, but reading Jaime’s work is something I always walk away from feeling as though I have been changed for the better."
— Heather Baker

"Jaime Buckley is a unique and quirky breed of writer. It’s not because of his style or skill….but his focus.
What’s makes this man so likable and why we adore him is that within minutes, you quickly realize his business isn’t products or information–it’s people. Teaching, encouraging, entertaining, empowering and uplifting people–no matter who they are or where they live. What’s impressive, is he’s incredibly good at it. Just to be clear, this isn’t something Jaime does…it’s who he is…and that powerful fact makes him a gem to work with."
— Lynne Knowlton Design The Life You Want To Live!

Click for PODCAST INFO

Would you like to listen to Jaime's podcasts?

Choose your favorite platform:
• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• Breaker
• Overcast
• Pocket Casts
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PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW!

Life Is Like Fiction is a show Jaime does with his family--mainly his own children. They talk about life, adventures, creativity and so much more. Not always for kids, there's always a lot of laughter and sarcasm.
Choose your favorite platform:
• Apple Podcasts
• Google Podcasts
• Spotify
• Breaker
• Overcast
• Pocket Casts
• RadioPublic
• Stitcher PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW!