For over a decade, actor Corey Maher has worked on big-budget blockbuster movies and Emmy award winning television shows, alongside some of Hollywoodâs biggest stars. But after a devastating on-set accident, he now faces his most demanding role yet as he explores the strength and depth of his own character.
In The Backstory, Corey rewinds the reel on fifty years of family, friendship, and failure to uncover his personal motivation to persevere under extreme duress. From his Midwestern roots and a near death experience with a flying shovel, to haunted houses, heavy metal and stage fright, this isnât a book that pretends to have all of the answers. Just some damn good stories.
Told with unfiltered honesty and a wicked sense of humor, The Backstory is a raw look at a life full of wrong turns, hard lessons and the surprising struggles that can pull a man forward.
Because life doesnât come with a script. Just veiny arms and chest hair.
For over a decade, actor Corey Maher has worked on big-budget blockbuster movies and Emmy award winning television shows, alongside some of Hollywoodâs biggest stars. But after a devastating on-set accident, he now faces his most demanding role yet as he explores the strength and depth of his own character.
In The Backstory, Corey rewinds the reel on fifty years of family, friendship, and failure to uncover his personal motivation to persevere under extreme duress. From his Midwestern roots and a near death experience with a flying shovel, to haunted houses, heavy metal and stage fright, this isnât a book that pretends to have all of the answers. Just some damn good stories.
Told with unfiltered honesty and a wicked sense of humor, The Backstory is a raw look at a life full of wrong turns, hard lessons and the surprising struggles that can pull a man forward.
Because life doesnât come with a script. Just veiny arms and chest hair.
Admit it, you picked up this book and opened it because the pictures on the front and back covers caught your eye and you thought to yourself, âHello Daddy. Whatâs your story?â
To be honest, Iâm flattered that most women and a few men have reportedly swooned over me whenever I walk into a room. It actually cracks me up because I wasnât always considered a handsome fella. When I graduated college in 1997, I weighed almost 300 pounds and wore glasses. Nobody bothered to take a second glance at me when I walked into a room back then. Now youâre thinking:
âOK, this must be another âself-empoweringâ book, filled with superficial statements of the obvious and other bullshit, written by an egocentric, narcissistic prick. Another story of some fat boy who worked out, got in shape and is now full of himself and seeking external validation. Just like that guy who played the fat kid in Stand By Me. What was his name? Uggh, why did I drink a whole bottle of wine last night? My head is killing me. I need to slow down. Where the hell is my husband? We need to go soon. We have to stop by the grocery store on the way home. What kind of cheese did Susan say went well with Pinot Noir?â
Before you put this book down to look up cheese pairings on your phone or to go find your spouse (try the front of the store, theyâre probably waiting for you there), let me clarify a few things first.
This is not a self-help book filled with platitudes about the obvious. At least, I donât think it is. I canât say whether youâll find me to be an egocentric, narcissistic prick. I donât think I am and have never been accused as such. But nobody is without a critic in this world. Iâm sure somebody thought Mother Teresa was full of herself.
So, whatâs this book about?
Well, to state the rather obvious, this book is my Backstory.
The term âbackstoryâ is typically used in reference to a process that an actor uses when developing a characterâs mannerisms and motives. Iâm a part-time actor and have worked on several major motion pictures and television shows over the last decade as well as produced my own award-winning, independent films.
Now, before you say âNopeâ and put this book down, hear me out.
When developing a characterâs backstory, an actor creates a history of moments and life experiences that have shaped the characterâs principles, values and outlook on life. Basically, everything that has happened in that characterâs life that has made him or her into the person they are today. The actor then creates a headspace in their mind and dives into those experiences, trying to find the truth within the character so it can be properly played. Just watch any movie featuring Daniel Day Lewis or Meryl Streep and youâll know what Iâm talking about.
Recently I reached a low point and had to come to grips with the fact that my life is half over. Iâm closer to the grave than the crib now. In accepting that fact, I decided I wanted to play the second act of my life properly. And to do that, I need to understand my backstory. Who wouldnât benefit from a better understanding of themselves?
Plus, âbackstoryâ sounds cooler than memoir or autobiography. Saying this book is my memoir makes me sound ancient and uptight. Saying itâs my autobiography makes it sound dull and boring. So, Fuck That! I think Iâve had an interesting life so far. Itâs time I put it under a microscope and took notes.
This book is a collection of stories, moments, people and experiences in my life that have shaped the core of who I am today at 50. Iâm not a recovering addict or here to sell you an ideology of any particular variety. Politics, in general, bore me, and I donât like people who preach or proselytize. I wish I could say that I have the recipe for a fulfilling life, but I donât. I do think I can share a few ingredients with you that have made my life more palatable though. Because, in my experience, life can be pretty bland at times and downright inedible occasionally.
I wrote this book to analyze my lifeâs story up to this point in the hope that I can better appreciate it and understand all that I have to be grateful for. I know that most self-published books sell very few copies and that the odds of anyone other than my wife and my mother reading my book are slim. But I decided to write it anyway. At the very least, Iâll have it for some added perspective when my life takes a wrong turn down shit creek again.
Iâm not a war hero or a billionaire tech mogul, and Iâm certainly not a famous actor by any stretch. This book isnât a retelling of all my experiences on a film set meant to wow you with stories about working with celebrities. Thereâs some talk about that, but itâs minimal.
I think you would be interested in my story. Iâve experienced quite a few triumphs and dismal failures in just about every facet of my life over the last 50 years. Plus, itâs my nature to be a wise ass. Finding the humor in everything is my modus operandi.
As you have already noticed, I do use some curse words, but I donât pepper my language with them as much as my wife peppers her salads with cayenne and garlic. Seriously sweetheart, thatâs enough! I use profanity to accentuate and highlight feelings that I feel deserve a little more attention, or to get a laugh. That kinda shit.
Living in the 21st Century, with all its technological marvels and constant bombardment of information, our civilization has evolved to have a very limited attention span. If you have something that youâd like to share with the world, you have about 30 seconds to grab someoneâs attention before they get bored and decide to scroll down to find something else to form an opinion about. I understand and accept that.
That said, I encourage you to dive into this book. My primary goals when writing it were to keep it interesting and filled with humor. After all, I am my own worst critic, and if I enjoyed writing it and reading it, Iâm confident you will too.
So, thatâs it. Thatâs my pitch. Iâm not trying to sell you a ten-step program or get you to download an app. I just want to share with you my backstory. Maybe itâll encourage you to write and share yours someday.
I hope you enjoy it.
Corey
~ My phone says that âsoft, bloomy rind cheeses, like Brie and Camembert, are best to pair with a Pinot Noir. But it is a versatile wine and goes well with âsemi-hard, nutty cheeses as wellâ.
Semi-hard.
That sounds like how I felt when watching Baywatch as a kid.
The Backstory: Scenes and Stories from My Unscripted Life is a memoir that feels like youâre pulling up a chair over coffee, listening to a best friend recount their highest and lowest moments, with plenty of funny stories in between.
The book isnât a self-help guide like many celebrity memoirs seem to be, and it isnât a tale of triumph and victory either. Itâs simply a shared collection of moments from a life lived. A casual conversation recounting childhood memories, curiosity, grief, family relationships, and other experiences that shaped Corey Maher into who he is today. You get the sense that Maher is writing just as much to understand himself as he is to entertain the reader.
What makes this memoir work is its emotional honesty. Maher doesnât rush past the hard moments or dress them up as lessons learned. The chapters about his grandfather, in particular, are quietly devastating, capturing the shock of loss through a childâs eyes and the long shadow it casts into adulthood. These moments ground the book and give weight to the humor elsewhere. The jokes come with substance and are never cheap, and the reflection Maher brings throughout the book comes across as genuine and necessary.
Whether heâs recounting Dungeons & Dragons marathons, teenage obsessions, or formative family moments, the prose throughout the book remains approachable and sincere. The reader can easily imagine Maher sitting cross-legged in a chair, recounting tales of his life, nothing more and nothing less. Any lesson that is learned feels purely coincidental. This is a man simply telling his story and inviting you to listen.
The Backstory succeeds because it understands something many memoirs miss: the ability to relate to others doesnât come from extraordinary achievements, awards, or fame, but through emotional recognition. While the reader may not share the exact experiences Maher has gone through, they will recognize the feelings within the moments he shares.