My Story
I started writing at the age of 8 and was encouraged by parents, teachers, friends, and especially Young Chicago Authors (YCA). I was in YCA in the early days before the Louder Than a Bomb got organized, in the old apartment on Damen and Division. I won several slams, had quite a few features at places like The Guild Complex, Coffee Chicago (now The Daily Grind), Sun Cafe (now closed), Aloha Cafe (reading migrated to The Gallery Cabaret in Bucktown), and many other places. Most recently pre-pandemic I was The Gwendolyn Brooks prize slam contest twice at The Promontory (in Hyde Park).
The Bipolar started around 2002, and I've been hospitalized like 5 or 6 times. The first time was after I wrote Dissection. My theory is books are like my children and I have a strong reaction after I finish them or while I'm writing them. Could go either way, depression or mania. Depression is easier to handle since I'm getting too old for the physical activity of mania.
My Approach
Coffee, and good pens and paper. That's all I need. I decided to step into the 21st century and get my website in order. In the past, I've mostly written offline. For example, my journals are almost to 70 volumes dating from the age of 12. Stuart Dybek wrote, "I dig beauty" and I do. As well as music, art, culture, literature, philosophy, and good conversation.
Contact Me
All in all I've written 7 full length books of fiction and poetry, and I hope to get them all out there through self publishing on this website. If you're an agent or a press, by all means contact me at the button below.