Hi all
It seems like every time I try to get this blog going, something always happens that pulls me away. In April 2021, my father passed away suddenly, which derailed all my plans to continue with this blog. Up until then, I was hoping to update this once a week and talk about any writing news and other thoughts I may have had on my journey in the hope that it may help someone who wants to also follow that writing path.
Needless to say, there was quite a lull in my writing for a long time after that. But there have been some new and interesting things that have happened writing-wise over the last couple of years, which I'd like to finally share with everyone.
New, But Brief, Job
For a short time (from June 2022 to April 2023), I was a freelance editor for Your Teen Magazine, an online magazine dedicated to parents of teenaged children. (Check it out, it's an interesting and valuable resource for parents trying to navigate the rewarding, and sometimes frustrating, life with their teenagers.) During that time, I edited a number of articles submitted by other contributors, which was a wonderful experience. Not only did it help me hone my own editing skills, but it also allowed me to help others publish their work, which is very rewarding.
As an added bonus, I had the opportunity to write three of my own articles, all about tech-related topics. Two of the articles were posted on the Your Teen Magazine site, while one was a joint project with Verizon for the Parenting in a Digital World section of their News page. Here are some links to my articles below:
"Is the Social Media App TikTok Safe for Your Teens?" - Your Teen Magazine
"What is ChatGPT? What Parents Need to Know About This New Popular App" - Your Teen Magazine
"Learning the Language: Do You Know What These New Emojis Mean?" - Verizon
New Book!
Second, I have also been involved with writing more work-for-hire educational books. I have a number of books coming, and the first one was just released today!
It's called Jobs in Computer Science, and it's part of Core Library's Industry Jobs series. Here's a summary of the book:
Computer science has helped improve technology, health care, and even space travel. Workers in the field develop software that makes computers work, helping people stay connected. Other computer scientists design websites or build robots that improve daily life. Jobs in Computer Science explores a wide variety of careers in the field, covering the education and skills needed for each job.
The book is geared toward kids ages 9 - 13 (grades 4 - 8) who may be interested in computer-related jobs. It's available for order now wherever books are sold: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or your favorite local bookstore (which I encourage you to visit).
I have other books in the queue, and I'll announce more about those when the time comes.
Future Work and Future Blog Entries
Other than that, I'm still working on my own fiction writing. I've tinkering with a poem. I'm not an expert on writing poetry, but it seems to be the right format for the idea I'm trying to present, which is a short piece on death and dandelions. I'm also still working on my middle-grade ghost novel, which I hope to someday publish.
That's all for now. I'll try to provide more regular content in the future.
