I have always loved to write and have done so, off and on, since I was 12 years old. (And no, I’m not going to mention just yet how long a period of time that is; it will give away my age.) It was in seventh grade English class that I discovered I could write and write pretty damn well at that. I wrote short stories, I wrote long stories, I even started a book based on my school experiences at the time, which was an odd thing because who at that age has much to write about? At best my writing was hokey then, but important because I developed my writing voice at that young and tender age. I pretty much write like I talk and talk like I write. (With some not-so-ladylike language peppered in for flavor where appropriate. That normally only happens when something ticks me off and I rant.)

I have dabbled in and out of the craft ever since. In my early twenties I worked for a major daily newspaper here in Connecticut. I was not a reporter but I did work in the newsroom and the editors soon realized I had a natural talent for story telling. I cannot express how thrilling it was when my first news story was published. Unfortunately, due to company policies and internal politics, I was not able to write as much as I would have liked; I was a staff member but when some reporters saw my byline with the words “Staff Writer” under my name, they complained and I could no longer have a byline. Apparently they thought because I did not have a college degree I couldn’t write, but the truth was, I wrote better than some of the reporters with journalism degrees. I guess they just could not agree how to define my role.

Only now, many years later, I have returned to college to complete my bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing (with a minor in History) and resumed my passion. Most of my recent writing has been for college with one short story assignment turning ever-so-slowly into a book as suggested by my professor. As the tagline for this site says, to get better at writing you have to actually do it. That quote by Doris Lessing, the oldest recipient at age 88 to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2007, is the impetus for this site.

I’m not sure yet exactly what the content will be, which is why I chose ‘random writing’ as my base for a site name. Some will be opinion pieces, some fiction, some factual like magazine-style writing, and maybe even some nonsense thrown in for good measure. Hopefully, people will find it entertaining or thought provoking or even possibly be stirred to action. Constructive feedback and comments are most appreciated as that is how I will grow as a writer. The bottom line for why I write is because if I don’t, I fear my head will explode from too many ideas whirling in it. Writing is the pressure release valve for my brain.