I spent summers away from home from the time I was 12, working on wheat ranches in eastern Washington. I grew up fast and hard and may have been the original "Redneck Friend" (Jackson Browne)as that's what many of my college friends would introduce me as later on. Alone in the bunkhouse at night, far from home at the age of 12, sleeping on a rough spring mattress and listening to Wolfman Jack (early 60's) on my transistor radio is probably the foundation of who I've become. I learned to be accountable and responsible at an early age. And I learned how to take care of myself at an early age too. I draw from those experiences and from the people I met on the farm in those days to help create the characters I write about. Monk in Truths Blood is one example.   I'm no scholar when it comes to history, in fact I hated it in high school, but in college the subject really grabbed me. Today it stays with me and I wonder what it is about mankind that prevents us from learning histories lessons. I've used this as my motivation for writing both Truths Blood and its sequel Red Star Rising. On a side note, I'm not a techy and don't even own a cell phone, one of the greatest banes of our society.

I'm a regular Joe and I will always applaud the 'regular Joes' out there who struggle and work hard to be successful. Awards are nice but if you cant be happy with your own accomplishments whether someone recognizes them or not, you will never be happy. I have a few small awards, but I don't stand on them and they are not who I am. I've kayaked many rivers, climbed mountains (Mt. Rainier being the tallest) and traveled. Still it remains that what means the most is family, friends and helping those who cannot help themselves. Those are the greatest achievements and awards any man can achieve.