Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I've always lived in Southeastern Wisconsin in or around Milwaukee. My writing has been influenced more by what I've read and experienced in life than the locations where I have lived. Perhaps one day, I'll have to incorporate the essence of this area into one of my stories. I do have a short story I haven't published yet where the locale is a county park. I'll have to blow the dust off that one day and see what I can do with it.
When did you first start writing?
The series I'm working on now, The Crystal Crux, was my first attempt at really writing. The original story, started over 20 years ago, was about 70 pages long and horribly written. I still have it. The first book of the series now is over 300 pages long, so either I've become rather long winded or I've improved upon the story and become a much better writer. I prefer to hope for the latter.
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