Long Version: I’m a writer of both fiction and nonfiction. I wrote my first short story when I was in the third grade, I think. I vaguely remember it had something to do with spelunking, and ghosts, and two kids exploring a cave and a magical ham sandwich. (I mean come on, I was little. My main influence was Scooby-Doo.) A teacher dubbed me “the writer” and after that, it was on. I decided I was going to be a writer.

Along the way I was somehow convinced that “being a writer” wasn’t a real thing, and instead wound up with a degree in journalism. So that’s what I did after college. It was great from a writing standpoint, because I got to do a lot of writing that was actually published, and from a people standpoint, because I got to meet a lot of really interesting people. But not so great from the standpoint of the fact that I kind of hated being a journalist. The introvert part of my “extroverted introvert” didn’t like pestering people for comments, or bringing up unpleasant things. (I’ve also recently realized that I like being the expert, and when you’re a journalist, you always have to quote someone else as the expert, even when it’s an area in which you really do have expertise.)

I went on to become a corporate communications specialist, a magazine editor, a newsletter editor, a video production manager, a communications planning strategist, a web developer/designer, a print project manager, a digital project manager, a digital marketing consultant, a fine art photographer/videographer/installation artist, a painter, a hands-on art teacher, a web development/object oriented programming professor, a virtual reality build hobbyist, an art appreciation/art history professor, and a media arts/web design professor (again). All great experiences. None of them the kind of thing I’d had in mind when I was in the third grade.

At some point, I again remembered wanting to be a writer and I decided it wasn’t too late to do something I’d meant to do for basically forever, and here we are. I started my first novel as part of NaNoWriMo in 2018. I didn’t “win” NaNoWriMo, but I finished the novel in May 2019. The next several years were spent revising, editing, querying agents, revising again, abandoning hope, rewriting, re-editing, and finally, independently publishing in June 2024. The conclusion to the duology will be out in the late Fall of 2024. Next up is a sci-fi novelette, which should publish in July or August. I’m in the middle of writing a speculative time-travel historical, and a romantic comedy, but have so many ideas I’ll never run short of stories to work on.

You made it all the way to the end! Wow, you’re a real fan. If you want more, please check out my Instagram or Facebook. If you’re also a writer (or just interested in the business and process of writing/publishing, you might want to subscribe to my podcast , Read Write Geek, for writing/publishing/querying tips, personal rants, and the occasional Story Hour. Either way, you’ll want to sign up for my decidedly non-spammy newsletter for life updates, free fiction, sneak peeks, and cat pictures. Lots of cat pictures.