I’ve known since I was about 6 years old that I wanted to be a writer. I was at my friend Frances’ house, and we were talking about what we wanted to be when we grew up. This was the stage when I wanted to be a ballerina one day and a cowgirl the next. But on this day, I was sprawled across one of Frances’ twin beds looking at a storybook. When Frances asked the always-popular question, I answered, “I want to write stories.” And, I knew it was true.

I wrote for the campus newspaper at Baylor University, where I earned a bachelor of arts in journalism. After graduating, I worked for a couple of years at the Beaumont Enterprise, and then moved to Jacksonville, Fla., where I worked at The Florida Times-Union for 27 years.

In July 2005, I quit
For about a decade, I had been researching my family history. It started innocently enough, when an aunt told me that my great-grandfather had fought in the Civil War. That’s all she knew. But after a little digging, I found a gold mine of information about him, thanks to a family feud played out in years of correspondence with the War Department. I was hooked.

For years, I corresponded with Don Hutchens of St. Johns, Newfoundland, my father’s hometown. He was researching Sir James Pearl, my great-great-great uncle. Pearl served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars, then became an opium trader in the China Seas and finally retired to Newfoundland to farm. The city of Mount Pearl grew up on his estate.
When Don told me he was ready to write a book about Pearl, I volunteered. I quit my job, bought an RV and drove to St. Johns (there’s a ferry trip involve). I spent three months working with Don on the book, Pearl: The Man & and the Place.
I’m back in Jacksonville working as a freelance writer and personal historian.
I can help you write that book you’ve been meaning to write, or write it for you. And, I can track down that elusive great-great-great uncle. Check out the Web site to see what I can do for you. And, if you don’t see it here, tell me what you have in mind, and I’ll see if I can help you.

Oh, and I have credentials: I am a member of the Association of Personal Historians and the National Genealogical Society, and a trained Ethical Will Workshop facilitator.