I wrote fantasy/sci-fi as a kid (who didn't?) then gradually shifted to contemporary poetry in college. I fell in love with the immediacy, range, and believe it or not, the humor of contemporary poetry. I had my early successes in that field but still dabbled in fantasy on the side. Over the years, working mostly in the summers (I teach during the school year), I completed my first two fantasy novels.
As far as influences go, I'm pretty eclectic (probably making me the 50,000th person here to say that). Authors who impacted me, in no particular order: Walt Whitman, Georg more...
