My Story

I paused briefly after attaching my short manuscript to the correspondence – then hit send. Within minutes, a “no-reply” email slid into my inbox. It was a “no-thanks” message, similar to the ones with which I had become familiar during my attempts to publish The Play’s the Thing – my children’s series featuring its first installment, Artichokes, Anyone – years ago as I contacted potential literary outlets. It was never an actual rejection; just simply a “this doesn’t fit our list at this time” note.

I have written much over the years. Most of my published works have been of a professional nature, addressing issues of public schooling and educational excellence. Now that I am writing pieces of a more general nature, I had a question: Who, besides my faithful and talented writers’ group, would be my readers? Or put in more stark terms, “Who else would care?”

So, I spent some time re-reading various articles written over the last year or so. “Not completely undeserving of a quick read,” I thought. I could entertain. I could inform. I might even be able to make you cry.

The internal struggle of any artist is this: Do I create solely for the pleasure, for the catharsis, for the drive to express? Or for the audience, the recognition, the acclaim? Ultimately, you do it for both. You do it to say, “This is what I did, what I made, who I am.”

It is in this spirit that I offer my new writer’s website. Read what grabs you and let the rest go. And note that The Play’s the Thing is there!

I paused briefly after attaching my short manuscript to the correspondence – then hit send. Within minutes, a “no-reply” email slid into my inbox. It was a “no-thanks” message, similar to the ones with which I had become familiar during my attempts to publish The Play’s the Thing – my children’s series featuring its first installment, Artichokes, Anyone – years ago as I contacted potential literary outlets. It was never an actual rejection; just simply a “this doesn’t fit our list at this time” note.

I have written much over the years. Most of my published works have been of a professional nature, addressing issues of public schooling and educational excellence. Now that I am writing pieces of a more general nature, I had a question: Who, besides my faithful and talented writers’ group, would be my readers? Or put in more stark terms, “Who else would care?”

So, I spent some time re-reading various articles written over the last year or so. “Not completely undeserving of a quick read,” I thought. I could entertain. I could inform. I might even be able to make you cry.

The internal struggle of any artist is this: Do I create solely for the pleasure, for the catharsis, for the drive to express? Or for the audience, the recognition, the acclaim? Ultimately, you do it for both. You do it to say, “This is what I did, what I made, who I am.”

It is in this spirit that I offer my new writer’s website. Read what grabs you and let the rest go. And note that The Play’s the Thing is there!