"My 'great loves' are my wife, my son and writing -- but becoming a father is the closest I've come to figuring out the meaning of life," CNN's Deputy Political Director of Digital Content Alex Wellen told FishbowlDC when we chatted with the newsman about his new novel "Lovesick."

Wellen's life sounds simple enough now but his past is littered with all the makings of an identity crisis. His road to clarity included an engineering degree, a law degree and a brief stint as an intellectual property lawyer. He is the inventor of a double-sided table tennis paddle, a tactile timepiece that lets users secretly check the time and the author of a critically-acclaimed memoir, "Barman"- that chronicles the nine-month metamorphosis from law student to lawyer.

Wellen explained how he landed on news and novels, telling us "I'm addicted to the 'runner's high' I get from creating." And though his latest creation will be released as fiction, Wellen admits that he based the protagonist, Andy Altman "loosely" on himself. When we asked him about the object of Andy's lovesickness, Paige Day, he said "she's totally inspired by my wife Kris."

Wellen penned his new piece to dispel myths about masculinity and marriage. "I was tired of the way movies and novels portrayed men - always running from marriage," he told FishbowlDC. Now married six years, we asked the multifaceted man of CNN if we should expect his next book to be about fatherhood. To which he replied, "Perhaps...but right now I'm just enjoying my son. I rarely say 'I want to be the best at anything' but I'd love to be the best dad."

CNN will toast Alex Wellen and "Lovesick" at a book release party tomorrow night. For more info on Alex, check out his site here.