Welcome

Welcome to my website.  I appreciate you stopping by to learn more about me as a writer, as a teacher, as a mother.  I write mostly creative nonfiction and humor essays about whatever is currently flooding my mind.  I’ve also published fiction in a  literary journal, and I write feature articles for local and nationally syndicated magazines.  When I am not writing, I teach English and Creative Writing at the high school and college level.

My students often ask me whether I prefer teaching or writing the most.  My answer usually depends on the day.  Teaching in a huge public school is…well, rather public.  My writing, though, is a private process with a public outcome. I don’t feel whole when I am not writing. My days are filled with brilliant, sometimes apathetic, mostly lovable teenagers in various stages of development and piercings.  I have the honor of introducing them to my favorite authors and their writings.  I get to read their academic and creative writing and help them become better thinkers, writers, and scholars. Most days I am amazed that someone pays me to sit and talk about books all day.  I feel passionate about the teaching of writing and I try to be a model of a writer who loves the process and appreciates the product.