Lon Leatherland leans back in a rocking chair while relaxing on the front porch of the Brinegar Cabin on the Blue Ridge Parkway in southern Alleghany County. Leatherland is holding a copy of his recently published book, titled "A Town Called Woodbridge." The new author is a resident of the Cherry Lane community.

Local author creates a fictional town in his book, "A Town Called Woodbridge"

While not traditionally a wake-up-the-rooster kind of fellow, Lon Leatherland arose in the early hours of the morning on a mission. He had awoken from a dream about an old mountain story teller, complete with his name, Arlee Taylor.

In the early work, Arlee was an older man with a quick wit and a wry tale, a yarn which was quickly changed from dream to brief story. However, that was only the beginning of what would eventually become Leatherland's book, "A Town Called Woodbridge."

After sharing the short story with friends, Leatherland discovered that it appealed to many people and started considering writing a novel based on the idea.

First, Taylor would need a drink from the mythological fountain of youth in order to wake up on Chapter One as a boisterous sixth-grader.

As for the author, while Leatherland now calls Alleghany County home, he is originally from Fredericksburg, Va. Leatherland's father, a chemical engineer, generally moved the family every five years or so. Lon

Leatherland's travels from a lad to a young man had him all over the east, with stops in Charlottesville,Va., Charleston, S.C., Columbus, Ohio, Chattanooga, Tenn., and finally, Charlotte, N.C.

Leatherland wound up in Charlotte just as he turned 18 and immediately joined the Navy. Within six weeks, he was out on a medical discharge due to a problem with a cyst. About one year later, he got a waiver on the discharge and joined the Air Force, only to have another medical discharge after the same problem resurfaced. It was subsequently fixed through surgery.

As for his brief stints in service, Leatherland said he was partially guided to the military after three years in the Reserve Officers Training Corp (ROTC) in his high school. He was executive officer of his drill team.

"I liked the military lifestyle at that time," Leatherland said. "I enjoyed the order of it. I am a ‘neat-nick,' things have to be orderly."

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