Services
|
|
Since childhood, I have loved details, imagination, and story telling. English was always my favorite subject, essays my preferred examination. Puzzling together an assignment continues to be a fun challenge.
I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in English Education at
the University of Maryland in 1988. For ten years, I taught high school
English in Prince George’s County Schools, the county in Maryland where I grew
up. Not only did I teach English subjects ranging from yearbook to 9th grade
composition to Advanced Placement literature, I also taught math and science
classes to learning disabled students.
I first dabbled in freelance writing in my spare time in the latter part of my
teaching career. I had several articles published in religious print
magazines and
on-line forums. I also wrote a great deal of educational materials used
by my local congregation. In my current church, I have continued to compile
adult education materials and even
preached a time or two.
After a few years off to raise babies and get a divorce, I returned to the
workforce as a technical writer. Working with a
local general contractor, I collected and organized copious house
maintenance information for the contractor’s clients. In an effort to be
thorough, I had the delightful opportunity to go out with the contracting
crews and participate in some of the repairs and projects about which I had
been writing.
Moving on from technical writing, I branched into other writing experiences.
Press releases and
web copy for a local restaurant have been fun assignments.
Restaurant
critic was a savory assignment. The years as an English teacher returned
in the form of proofreading and manuscript critique projects. As a
personal essayist, I have combined two of my pleasures: listening to
stories and writing them.
In January of 2007, I began working as the schools’ columnist for the Crofton News-Crier, a subsidiary of the Capital-Gazette Communications newspaper. This wonderful writing assignment combined my experience as a teacher with my writing. Interviewing children and teenagers is a delightful challenge. Some of my articles appeared in the Annapolis Capital and other Capital-Gazette papers.
The regular school column caught the eye of the editor of Suburban Scene Magazine, a local magazine now out of print. Along with advertorials and assignment pieces, I wrote a monthly singles column based on conversations with local singles from a blog linked to the magazine's website. I have also written a few articles for Inside Annapolis Magazine.
I have had a variety of other publications including a
couple of
book
reviews and
sermons. Networking for the magazine has led to copywriting for websites
and e-mail marketing. Recent assignments with Taste of the Bay Magazine
on networking and the
Slow Food Movement have been fun. >>> My featured articles:
The Snail's Defense:
Rediscover the Family Meal with Slow Food, Exercise Your Options:
Networking Builds Business Muscle This article is in the
July/August 2010 edition: The Park is the Place
- The Uptown Annapolis Venue Offers Year-round Verve
Through all of these experiences and the vast number of fascinating people I have encountered through business networking and interviews, I am amassing experience and notes for a novel. Who knows, one day you might be a character!