I grew up in Southwest Michigan and have lived in Indiana since my freshman year of college. My wife and I have been married for 28 years and have three adult children. We enjoy camping, hiking, and kayaking. Last year we bought a camper-trailer, and we enjoy hitting the road whenever we can.

In the mid-90s, I started teaching English at the middle school level. When we moved a few hours south to live on some family farmland, I took a position at a nearby high school. Through my last decade in the classroom, I taught primarily AP English to juniors and seniors. Over the years, though, I’ve taught everything from sixth-grade social studies to video production, basic skills, yearbook, and critical thinking.

Because most of my career was spent in smaller, rural schools with fewer teachers, I’ve had the privilege of working with students from various academic categories. I’ve taught special-services students, regular English students, and AP students who were headed for elite universities.

This variety kept the job feeling fresh. It also gave me a broad, deep understanding of the k-12 education landscape. It required me to adjust my instructional style and my voice to address the demands of different tasks and audiences.

A few years ago, I started a part-time woodworking business, making primarily kitchen utensils from wood I harvest from our property. I sell my items at farmers’ markets and a few shops in our area. You can see some of my work at LeaningLocust.com.

What I enjoyed about teaching was the process of engaging students with ideas--helping them find and create meaning. What I enjoy about woodworking is the process of sculpting a natural object into something that is both beautiful and useful. All of these skills and interests come together in my work as a writer.