In May of 2017, I said good bye to my teaching career after 30 years of work in Texas. With a total of 39 years in the classroom (9 of which were in Maryland), I realized half of my adult life had been spent teaching. But the time had come, and I left with no regrets. I do maintain contact with the school district by occasionally doing substitute teaching.
Since my retirement, I have worked more on my writing and am now in the process of completing my second book that is inspired by the painting “Nighthawks” by Edward Hopper. The subject of the painting is a diner with two men and a woman along with the owner. My book takes each character and weaves their stories adding another character unseen in the painting who becomes the focus of the book.
Another aspect of writing is my involvement with East Texas Writers Guild, serving as the Guild’s correspondence secretary as well as making occasional contributions to their newsletter, “The Next Chapter.”
Freelance writing for magazines that emphasize fiction and nonfiction themes of history and mystery is yet another goal I am currently pursuing—age groups ranging from early teen through adult.