Anthologies

Chapter, "Cup of Comfort for Horse Lovers" (2008)

Short Stories

Topics

Public Speaking Details

- “Putting the Industrial Revolution to Work in the Classroom,” at the 101st annual convention of the National Council of Teachers of English, Chicago, IL, 2011 - “Animal Actors: Evolving with the Changing Western,” at the Film & History Conference, sponsored by The Center for the Study of Film and History, Chicago, IL, 2008

Biography

Once upon time, around age 6, I launched my storytelling career. I started by writing descriptions of my stuffed animals. Plot came later, a tip from my mom. Since then, I’ve written breaking news, profiles, lesson plans, and screenplays. My audiences have been newspaper readers, students, lawyers, guests at a zoo, and filmmakers. They have taught me to value economy over verbosity, specificity over generalities, and humor over unearned sentimentality. Currently, I write marketing assets for legal podcasts. I am also expanding my screenplay portfolio, heavy on crime and historical fiction. My first film was a short (“The Dollhouse”) that fictionalized a true crime: My cat ate my dollhouse family. I wrote and produced a short mockumentary (“The True Story of Hammond VanOchre and His Amazing Flying Steam Pig”), set during the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago. A 10-minute dramedy called “Therapy,” in which I fictionalize a story from my father’s youth, will be produced in 2025.