My Story
I’m a freelance writer and manager of a local observatory. But it wasn’t always like that.
From an early age I knew writing was my passion. I was always eager to create stories and worlds, heroes and monsters, glimpses into other realities… and I was good at it. I could have picked a bunch of different artistic approaches to satisfy my creative urges, and for a time I did—drawing, music, video game design, the whole deal. But it always came back to the English language as my preferred mediator. I grew up in Charleston, South Carolina with an imagination bursting with dreams.
Just before starting a new adventure at college, I developed a hobby in astronomy, purchasing my first telescope and gazing up into the heavens every chance I got. Then I went off to school and, as it turned out, they had an observatory. I visited so much that I started volunteering. Soon I transitioned from volunteer to student worker. Then an intern. And now I’m its manager, offering cosmic tour guides of the night sky to guests and operating million-dollar equipment.
What does this have to do with my writing? Astronomical concepts can be very, very complicated subjects—even explaining a common phenomenon such as twinkling stars can be dense material when you deal with the nitty-gritty of it. But not when you understand it. My experience has taught me the invaluable ability to boil complex matters and jargon down to what really counts: concise, clear communication. The improvement in my writing following my observatory work was astounding. I wrote for the college newspaper, and the editors were always impressed by my prose.
I graduated with a BA in English, and if there’s one aspect of language my classes taught me, it’s that words are powerful. Extremely so. They evoke ideas and thoughts within the minds of others, and when used correctly, can transform entire lives. Simple utterances—written or otherwise—can change everything. I don’t think enough people write with enough respect for language in mind. It’s become a staple of my process.
My journey has been a varied one after my college years. I started work in places I never would have expected: I was a smart phone repair specialist, and then an ophthalmic technician. I became grounded in the technological world, and I rose in the ranks of the medical industry, eventually becoming a scribe for top optometrists and ophthalmologists. In both cases I began with subjects I knew nothing about and became exceedingly adept by the time I moved on to try something else.
But just as my artistic endeavors always led me back to writing… so too did my life bring me back. Now I strive to do it for a living. And I love it.
