What jobs have you had?

My career path has been anything but traditional, shaped by circumstances, choices, and an evolving understanding of what truly fulfills me.

Early Work Experience
My first official job came at sixteen when I joined the Youth Conservation Corps, spending a summer working and living in state parks. Before that, I’d taken on various odd jobs during high school—babysitting, picking blueberries, and eventually working as an informal au pair for a family with traveling parents and three children, including one with autism. I spent afternoons and weekends caring for them while still finding time for my best friend.

Military Service: A Defining Rebellion
The decision that would most profoundly shape me came two weeks after high school graduation when I enlisted in the Marine Corps. This was my way of rejecting my adopted father’s plan for me to attend business school on scholarship while living at home—a path I refused to take. In the Marines, I found meaningful work as a school and base liaison at the electronics school on Twenty-Nine Palms base.

The Practical Years
During my first marriage, I worked various jobs to support our household. I managed a limousine company’s office while pursuing my Computer Science degree full-time and working data entry—possibly the most mind-numbing job imaginable. After graduating, I programmed EPROMs for a flow meter company, which, while utilizing my education, felt equally unstimulating.

The Unexpected Discovery
Everything changed when I found myself in the right place at the right time. My colleagues needed documentation for a complex flow meter, and they turned to me. That moment gave birth to my career as a technical writer—work I genuinely loved. My Computer Science background proved invaluable; I could interview programmers in their own language and translate complex systems into accessible documentation.

I climbed the career ladder from technical writer to documentation specialist, trainer, and eventually manager. Just as I reached the pinnacle of my corporate success, a thyroid storm forced six months of bed rest and left me unable to return to traditional office work.

Entrepreneurial Success
This setback led to my final corporate achievement: founding my own technical writing company. I assembled a team of exceptional writers, and we became the industry’s most sought-after firm for three years. We closed the company at our peak, just as the industry was shifting away from traditional documentation—timing that left us successful while others scrambled for work.

Following My Heart
This transition opened the door to pursue my true passion: fiction writing. I immersed myself in the writing community, starting blogs and volunteering as a writing and critique group leader. My most significant contribution was co-founding the Florida Writers Association with four other volunteers scattered across the state. Twenty years later, FWA has become Florida’s largest writers organization.

While building FWA, I set aside my personal writing, but once the organization became self-sufficient, I returned to fiction with renewed energy. I completed about a dozen novels and novellas, plus several anthologies.

Crisis and Renewal
In 2017, a backup disaster wiped out most of my work, triggering years of writer’s block. During this difficult period, I leaned on my faith and began writing a Christian blog, exploring historical backgrounds of biblical figures through research—work that gradually rekindled my love for writing.

Coming Full Circle
By 2023, I decided to collect the short stories I’d written throughout my life. As I sorted through them, I discovered an underlying theme that demanded to be told. This discovery became “Shadow Man,” a work pulled directly from my heart and memories.

A month later, I created “Words Heal,” a self-guided workbook helping others use writing as a tool for healing from trauma and emotional challenges.

Present Day
Today, I sit contentedly, knowing that others find value in my writing and confident that I’ve found my true calling. I’ll always have the best job in the world—being a writer.

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