"I have been a professional journalist for many years, writing criticism for domestic and international music magazines, and most recently as a blogger for the Huffington Post.

My love affair with English began with the first book I read entirely to myself, in the 2nd grade. That the book was "The 13 Clocks" by James Thurber, who had grown blind by the time he wrote it. I think this may be why he was so sensitive to the cadence of language at this point in his career. His way of creating prose-poetry has affected my entire approach to writing, to this day.

I am considered by my friends and colleagues to be an excellent and amusing story teller, aware of how to set up a tale so that it flows logically, and has a satisfying conclusion. This has stood me in very good stead when writing essays and articles for my profession, as well as way back when I was a student. In another vein, I studied voice and diction (Eastern Standard Speech) at the High School of Performing Arts, as part of the Drama curriculum. I have been told by people for whom English is not a first language that I am very easy to understand because I articulate clearly.

Although I have not taught professionally, people who meet me often ask me if I am a teacher; perhaps it is because I truly enjoy the process of communicating with others, and getting someone as excited about a subject as I am, is a real thrill for me." less...