About Me
My background
Was it the notebook filled with poems and 'themed' short stories I gave my mother for Mother's Day in 1990 that tipped her off or the endless journals or the countless books devoured during class, during dinner, in the car, in my bed or was it the effortless As in my favorite class, English? Whatever it was, my mother Nadia knew I should be a writer eons before I did.
My writing roots
These are a few of my favorite titles and yes, they are all well-loved editions. While I find myself more compelled to write creative non-fiction, my reading tends be 80% fiction / 20 creative non-fiction.
I love to reread books I've enjoyed and since I consume a strict diet of literary fiction and bookclub picks courtesy of the above-mentioned mother, I find that almost everything I get a chance to read is, in fact, really good. And yes, I miss being a student because the only thing more fun than finishing a book is writing about it. Which leads me to:
My path
I've been on a journey over the last two years to glean as much useful knowledge from authors I admire, via online workshops, in-person events and wonderful book about the craft of writing.
One writer I admire greatly and with whom I have worked several times is Dirteater (Cometierra) author Dolores Reyes. She's a wonderful teacher as well as a talented writer and she picks great short stories to work with. I'm also a member of George Saunder's Story Club which is an invaluable space for discussion.