Qualifications

Education

Master of Fine Arts, Creative Writing
Summa cum laude - Emerson College: Boston, MA, USA, 1999

Bachelor of Arts, Writing & Literature
Cum laude - Fairfield University: Fairfield, CT, USA, 1992

Certificate IV Workplace Assessment & Training
Axiom College: Milton, QLD, AUSTRALIA, 2003

Advanced Care of Reptiles with Martin Fingland
[incl. Dangerous/Venomous Snakes]
TAFE - Red Hill, QLD, AUSTRALIA, 2007

Memberships

National Writers Union | NY, NY, USA, since 1994
Queensland Writers Centre | Brisbane, QLD, since 2001
Australian Society of Authors | Strawberry Hills, NSW, since 2005

Writing, Editing & Teaching Experience

As an Editor - Literary

Literary Contest Judge - 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 IP Picks
Novel, Short Story Collection, Creative Non-Fiction, Poetry for Interactive Publications Pty Ltd
Prose Editor for Interactive Publications Pty Ltd since December 2004
Collaborating with the Publisher on the Development of Fiction, Creative Non-Fiction, Young Adult & Children's Literature
Editor for 2008 Releases
- As If by Barry Levy | The Umbilical Word by Darren Groth [Novels]
- The Voyage of the Shukenoor by Dr Erica Bell | Over My Dead Body by Jim Brigginshaw [Historical Fiction]
- Blood and Guts: Life in the Operating Theatre by Gloria Burley | Put the Billy on by Ann Jones [Memoirs]
- Jason Chen and the Time Banana by Duncan Richardson [Young Adult]
Editor for 2009 Releases
- Sacrifice by Lisa Saul [Fantasy]
- Hitching Oz by Tom & Simon Sykes [Travel Essay Collection from 40 Celebrity, Academic & Literary Contributors]
- Wobbles by Nadine Neumann [Memoir, Olympic Swimmer]
- A Beginner's Guide to Dying in India by Josh Donellan [Novel]
Editor for 2010 Releases
- Memento Mori by Daniel King [Short Story Collection]
- Enter the Queen by Marquise de Sade [Erotica]
- Harry Potter Power by Dr JA Sykley [Creative Non-Fiction, Psychology]
- The Importance of Being Cool by Olwyn Conrau [Memoir] [content edit only]
Editor for 2011 Releases
- Shades of Exodus by Barry Levy [Novel] [content edit only]
- Stop Not Until the Goal Has Been Reached: The Springfield Story by Greg Bourke [Creative Non-Fiction]
15+ Years Experience as a Manuscript Assessor & Appraiser
Guiding Writers with the Development of a Broad Range of Fiction & Non-Fiction in the USA & Australia

As a Writer & Editor - Commercial

20 Years Experience Corporate Writing & Editing Experience
Writing & Editing for Corporations, Small Businesses & Individuals in the USA & Australia
10+ Years Experience Serving Australian Government Sectors
Editing & Proofreading for such government departments as Queensland's Service Delivery and Performance Commission and Queensland Health
Key Clients & Employers
Tod Consulting, Commerce Vision, IP, Queensland Government, Starcom, Winning Resumes, Ziff-Davis Publishing

As a Published Writer

Published Track Record Commencing in 1987
Promotional, Travel, University Press, Anthology, Literary Journal, Periodical & Web
Poetry, Essays, Creative Non-Fiction Published Internationally
American, Canadian & Australian Publishers
American Contest Winner & Published Writer
Commencing career with First Prize - Newport Poetry Contest, Published by The Sakonnet Times in 1987
Key Publishers: IP, Ducts Magazine [New York City], The Courier Mail, Brick [Emerson College],
The Sound [Fairfield University], Shopping Secrets, The Newport Review, The US National Writer's Union's Roughdraft,
Canada's Global Paradigm, The Portable Muse

As a Writing Mentor & Teacherr

10+ Years Experience Teaching Creative, Academic & Corporate Writing
To Adults & Young People in Australia [TAFE, The University of Queensland] & USA [St Francis House]
Served as an Intern at Boston's Saint Francis House
Teaching ESL, Academic & Corporate Writing to People with Addictions/Transitioning from Homelessness in '99
Creative Writing Mentor for Youth Arts Queensland
Participating in Australia Council's National Mentorship Program in '07

Courses & Workshops

Creative Workshops:
Creative Writing; Creative Non-Fiction [Literary Journalism]; Travel Writing; Memoir [Life Stories/Family Histories]; Advanced Fiction & Non-Fiction; The Novel
Professional Development:
Effective Business & Report Writing; Editing & Proofreading; Minutes; Polish & Publish Your Manuscript; Dealing with Publishers; Motivate Yourself to Write
Tailored Professional Development:
Custom Workshops for a Range of Organisations
Key Clients: Flight Centre, Starcom, CITEC, Queensland Nurses' Union, Queensland Transport

Other Career Highlights

Australian Parliament's mention of Tilly Brasch's book No Middle Name
Seeing one of my first editorial jobs in Australia send a ripple across the country with grace & integrity
The guidance of three brilliant mentors at Emerson College, Boston
Andre Dubus III [Bluesman, House of Sand & Fog, The Garden of Last Days: A Novel]
M. G. Stephens [Where the Sky Ends: A Memoir of Alcohol & Family, Green Dreams: Essays under the Influence of the Irish, Our Father: A Play]
Sam Cornish [An Apron Full of Beans, Cross a Parted Sea: Poems, Folks Like Me: Poems]
Meeting David Sedaris
Taking 20 Creative Writing students to his reading at Brisbane's Irish Club as a field trip
Meeting Hunter S. Thompson
Posing as a quiet Harvard Law student to get in the door
Winning the Newport Poetry Contest at 17 and thinking the reception would be a simple affair
While this, my first public reading, turned out to be for a crowd of 50 war veterans

"Good things,
when short, are twice as good."
-Gracián

Qualifications