Photo by Mary Rynes

I escaped from corporate America in 2006 to become a writer, my left-brain exhausted from years as a number-crunching actuary and my right brain impatient to let my imagination run wild again.

Whether for an 80,000-word novel or an eight-line poem, I love to create complex characters and develop unexpected plot twists. I embrace the challenge that poetry presents of condensing a story, idea, or emotion into just a few words. Both prose and poetry indulge my fascination with the nuances of sounds, the magic of words, and the joy of unexpected discovery.

All three of my novels have been semi-finalists in the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition, the third as a work-in-progress. I am currently editing that third novel.

I live in Shaker Heights, Ohio with my husband Jim, and a very opinionated cat named Gateway.

Here he is meditating.

Here he is supervising my editing.

OTHER PASSIONS

FRIENDS AND FAMILY

I am so grateful for my amazing friends and family.

WRITERS

My fabulous writing groups enrich my life in so many ways. Northeast Ohio has so many talented and generous writers.

READING

So many books, not nearly enough time.

INDEPENDENT BOOKSTORES

How lucky are we that so many of our treasured bookstores are not only surviving but thriving. A short walk or a ten-minute drive takes me to Loganberry Books, Mac’s Backs and Appletree. Loganberry, photo below, has open mic for musicians on the first Thursday of the month and for writers on the second Thursday.

LIBRARIES

A great concept to start with and northeast Ohio has some of the best of the best. I do some of my best writing and editing at the Cleveland Heights/University Heights Library. Three cheers for librarians!

FARMERS’ MARKETS

Between my Fresh Fork CSA and the North Union Farmer’s Market at Shaker Square, I have amazing local produce year-round. Seriously, what is better than that first luscious tomato of the season?

COOKING

A passion inherited from my mother, who was a gourmet cook.

RESTAURANTS

We have so many local treasures. Our first love and still our go-to place is the Larchmere Tavern, a short walk. They helped us survive the endless unpacking once we had enough energy venture out and had tired of yet another pizza delivery. We have seen some treasures, like Noggins, close, but others open. My husband Jim and I share a love for good food and love trying new places. Current favorites, besides Larchmere Tavern, are Ratatouille, Washington Place Bistro, Gigi’s, Nighttown, Anatolia, Dewey’s Pizza, fire food and drink, Balaton, Mad Greek, L’Albatros, Michelson and Morley, Taste, and The Flying Fig. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why I have such a hard time losing weight.

THEATER & MUSIC

Theater at Dobama and Cain Park and sometimes downtown. Music at Nighttown and Cain Park and open mic first Thursday at Loganberry.

UNIVERSITY CIRCLE

Only a ten-minute drive away, University Circle is fabulous. Within blocks of each other are the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, the Cleveland Botanical Garden, and the Western Reserve Historical Society. In the summer, Wade Oval Wednesdays provide music of every style and we enjoy the Botanical Garden’s Gourmets in the Garden where a different chef demonstrates a signature dish each week for us to sample while we people watch. It is also the site of one of my favorite events–the wacky Parade the Circle. Not to mention some wonderful restaurants: L’Albatros, Michelson and Morley, and Trentina.

 Forget about when pigs fly, how about when rhinos fly?

TRAVEL