I am a PhD psychologist and licensed marriage/family therapist who directs a public school based Family Support Center. For most of my career, though, I worked in academics at the U of Rochester Medical Center (Psychiatry and Family Medicine) where I published a lot of stuff (55 papers/book chapters and 2 books), including some creative nonfiction. I turned to fiction (novels) 6 years ago.I have published two novels---Darkness is as Light and Pumpkin Hill---through Publish America. My latest novel is Charlie No Face, a coming of age story about an 11 year old boy and his transformative friendship with a disfigured hermit. Charlie is being published by Savant Books and Publications. It will be released in August 2010.

As a mental health professional, I am very interested in the interface between psychotherapy and writing.  Storytelling and story-listening are central to both; and both, in the end, are about making meaning. Both involve me every day in the key questions that life has to offer; questions about hope, loss, belonging, betrayal, joy, love, hate and more.

When I am writing, I am engaged in the most important work that I can do. Even if no one else notices.