I started writing for fun when I was in elementary school. I so enjoyed composition assignments! (Probably the only student in the class who did!)

I don't remember the first story I ever read; my mother was reading to me from the time before my memory started, and I started reading as soon as I could---Dick and Jane books in school and anything else I could find in the public library. I remember reading "The Silly Book" when I was about 7.

I enjoy fiction primarily, but I prefer fiction that also contains some meaning, some spiritual foundation.

Of authors, Stephen King is my favorite, although---ironically---I don't care for horror fiction, although Stephen King's best fiction has a depth that goes far beyond mere horror fiction. I tend to prefer genres over authors, and my favorite genre is historical fiction---making history come alive---and especially Biblical fiction, which is what I enjoy writing the most.

The Stand, by Stephen King, is an amazing piece of fiction, as are Green Darkness, by Anya Seton, and Bellefleur, by Joyce Carol Oates. Some favorites from my childhood include A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L'Engle, The Little Prince by Antoine St. Exupery, and Fox in Sox, by Dr. Seuss. (Well, it wouldn't be a complete list without something from Dr. Seuss!) My favorite non-fiction books include Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsch and The Road Less Traveled (and other titles) by M. Scott Peck.

I love the process of considering a situation and asking "What if...?" and finding a story in it. And to find a reader who has similar interests and delights who wants to read and enjoys reading what I write is the greatest delight of all!

To connect with someone who reads my writing is the whole purpose of writing---to delight, to give a new perspective to, perhaps even to inspire through the connection of writing and reading.

I have several desks, but my favorite is small, with all that I need---computer and printer, calendar, music CDs, relevant books, a selection of pens and pencils and post-it notes, as well as my favorite decorations all within easy reach. I have a second desk where I open and address mail so that my working desk doesn't get cluttered with paper. Been there, done that! And in front of my desk is a window of my house that looks out over the lake at the south end of my town, so I can watch the birds and the weather and the trees. Glorious!

I am planning to publish another novelette (similar in length to Encounters in Bethlehem) in a more modern setting. I am also editing some previous writings, and am starting on a new novel of Biblical fiction. I would also like to compile material from my sermons from when the years when I served small churches as a pastor, spiritual material that connects Biblical scriptures with words, images, and concepts of popular culture, such as movies, music, TV shows, commercials, cartoons, etc.