Experience
I have more than two decades experience working as a professional writer and editor. My previous work experience includes staff and freelance editing and reporting for print and web publications as well as technical writing. In addition, I have published three novels. I became a web publisher in 1999 and over the next decade maintained several web sites and published several e-zines as part of my internet marketing business.
That experience has a strong influence on my teaching as well as my work with the Morehead Writing Project.
In 2008, I became the Site Director for the Morehead Writing Project which includes initiating and managing federal, state, and local grants as well as a staff including a program assistant, student workers, and teachers contracted to lead programs. The Morehead Writing Project provides programs and services for teachers and schools in our region as well as community programs for youth and adults. My job also includes developing and maintaining working relationships within the National Writing Project and Kentucky Writing Project as well as Morehead State University and MSU’s service region to maximize available resources.
An example of this collaboration is the Writing Eastern Kentucky Conference which I started in 2009. I was able to use my experience as a professional writer to draw in published writers as well as MSU’s creative writing faculty to provide a writing conference for our region. In addition, I was able to give MWP teachers an opportunity to share their expertise with other teachers while also reconnecting with their writing. Finally, I provided an affordable and accessible professional conference for MSU students to attend.