Specialties

As an editor, I focus on nonfiction and memoir. My favorite topics are science, nature, travel, the arts, history, and sports (especially running).

Most of my editorial work has been in the fields of science and nature writing. I’m currently copyediting a scientific reference on the snakes of Arizona, with content editors Joe Mitchell and Andrew Holycross. I’m working with the University of New Mexico Press to publish George C. West’s field guide to plants of Arizona’s White Mountains in 2019. Two more books are also soon to be published: “Zion National Park Wildflowers” and “Birding Arizona,” by Charles Babbitt. And I worked with Eli Knapp to develop what became “The Delightful Horror of Family Birding: Sharing Nature With the Next Generation,” just published by Torrey House Press. Read my review.

Over the years, I’ve learned a lot about how to craft effective nature writing. Learn more here.

I became a sports editor in May 2018, when I took over as coordinating editor of the High Country Running column in the Arizona Daily Sun. It’s a weekly column that engages and nurtures the running community throughout northern Arizona. If you have an idea or a news tip, send me an email.

The previous coordinating editor, Myles Schrag, had a marvelous book idea, to celebrate the Flagstaff running community through the lens of our town’s unique relationship with the Imogene Pass Run. I’ve partnered with him to bring that project to fruition, with a publication date in August 2019.

I also specialize in the arts, especially the theatrical arts. I serve on the board of the Flagstaff Shakespeare Festival and have been the volunteer editor of its publications since 2016.

I love to read and write memoirs, especially travel memoirs. If you have one you’d like me to read, send it my way!

In fact, if you have a project of any type that you think might benefit from supportive editorial attention, please contact me.

Effective Nature Writing

DELIGHTFUL HORROR front cover 8_26 (1)One of the finest nature writers I’ve ever read is Eli J. Knapp, Ph.D., whose book “The Delightful Horror of Family Birding: Sharing Nature With the Next Generation” was just published by Torrey House Press. I encouraged Eli along the path toward publication of his marvelously funny and insightful essays, a process that forged an enduring friendship and, now, a book we’re both very proud of. Here’s my review.

I believe that passionate, evocative nature writing can inspire readers to act on behalf of the natural world and its wild residents. Some of my favorite writers are nature writers,  from Henry David Thoreau and Robert Macfarlane to Richard Nelson, Annie Dillard, and Terry Tempest Williams (to name just a few).

As a devoted reader of nature writing and the former associate editor for Arizona Wildlife Views magazine, I have extensive experience writing about wildlife and wild places and coaching others to do their best work for publication. Over the years, I’ve developed “Seven Rules for Nature Writing.” Those basic rules are:

  1. Take your reader on a journey.
  2. Use specific language.
  3. Take reference photos.
  4. Have the experience. Then go home and write about it.
  5. Know your stuff.
  6. Give your audience motive, means, and opportunity to act on behalf of nature.
  7. Write well.

To get a helpful, slightly longer version that explains each rule, fill out the contact form. Click “Yes, I would like to read your seven rules for nature writing.” I’ll be happy to send it your way!

Sports Writing

I became a sports editor in May 2018, when I took over as coordinating editor of the High Country Running column in the Arizona Daily Sun. It’s a weekly column that engages and nurtures the running community throughout northern Arizona.

I came to the position through my love for trail running. As coordinating editor, I get to work with all sorts of runners, from self-proclaimed back-of-the-packers to national champions. If you have an idea or a news tip, send me an email.

The previous coordinating editor, Myles Schrag, had a marvelous book idea: to celebrate the Flagstaff running community through the lens of our town’s unique relationship with the Imogene Pass Run. Imogene is a rite of passage for Flagstaff runners and one of the top five toughest things I’ve ever done. Run in Colorado every September, it features more than 5,000 feet elevation gain as you travel from Ouray, up over Imogene Pass at 13,100 feet, then down to Telluride. Every year, Flagstaff sends more participants than any other town, including Denver.

“To Imogene: A Flagstaff Love Letter” will include contributions from more than 50 writers, illustrators, and photographers. Myles and I are working together to bring that project to fruition, with a publication date in August 2019.