My first short story was written in the third grade and titled "Revenge of the Nerds." Spoiler: Nerds (the candy) got their revenge. I think I subconsciously knew the title had a twist, though I wasn't quite sure why.
Today I write short fiction, creative nonfiction, and my forthcoming novel,Coming Clean, launches Jan. 9, 2024, from Regal House Publishing (Preorder it!). It's a darkly complex, wildly funny story of haves vs. have-nots and healed vs. healed-nots as cleaning lady Dawn and her friend Matthew embark on a week-long, clandestine photography project--in the houses she cleans.
Great writing, for me, might not make you feel good, but it makes you feel. Deep and dark is good. Dark humor is better. Writers I admire include Elizabeth Strout, Denis Johnson (I joke he was my uncle but that's a lie), and Jill McCorkle, whose story "Crash Diet" is so funny I laughed myself out of the Canton Public Library and all the way home.
Home is the West Town neighborhood of Chicago with my husband and our weird dog, who is afraid of the reflection in her water dish and plays with balloons. Home is when I'm writing. I eat a lot of olives.
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