MEET THE PRESIDENT
Q: How long have you been involved with OWFI and in what roles?
A: I first entered the OWFI Writing contest in 2008. My first conference was in 2012. I started shepherding in 2014. In 2018 I was asked to fill the role of PR Director which I did up until 2022 when I took over as President.
Q: What is your favorite OWFI memory?
A: One of my most memorable moments was when I got my first First Place in the contest. It was for Blog and it was one I had written about being a dad. It meant the world to me.
Q: What do you write?
A: I love testing out new genres. I have a Historical Fiction novel coming out on December 13 (1st Place Winner in OWFI) and I am currently writing a horror novel. I am really enjoying horror.
Q: In your opinion, what is the best thing about OWFI?
A: There is nothing better at OWFI than meeting like-minded people who will ask you what you are currently working on. They will challenge you to take your craft seriously, and that doesn't happen a lot out here in the "real" world.
Q: What content would you like to bring to OWFI in the future?
A: Fresh content is always the best content. For people who come every year, I like to have things that still make them want to come back. For newbies, I hope they have a tough time choosing which classes to attend.
Q: What announced sessions are you most interested in at the upcoming the OWFI Conference?
A: I am very interested in the Pre-Con Workshop on Thursday that will help us identify our personalities and how to apply those to our writing.
Q: What is your personal experience with the OWFI writing contest?
A: I started with entering the contest (it was all I could afford), and I continue to enter it. It's an easy process and finding how you did at the banquet is a lot of fun. Even years when I don't win, I still like to celebrate my fellow writers and their wins.
Q: What do you like about being President?
A: Being President gives me the opportunity to give back to an organization that has done so much to boister my confidence as a writer. I also like being a part of the preparation process and seeing how the sausage gets made, so to speak.
Q: What is an interesting fact or hidden talent folks might not know about you?
A: I do a lot of woodworking in my spare time, mostly with a wood lathe, but I've also built some furniture. My dad and I do craft shows together.
Q: If you could grab a coffee with any author, living or dead, who would it be and why?
A: Any author? I guess I need a top 3: Stephen King as he is one of the most influential writers of the 20th/21st Century, Churck Palahniuk whose writing single-handedly inffluenced me to take a creative writing class in college and led to me trying my hand at writing in the first place, and the late, great F. Scott Fitzgerald.
