I’m an award-winning author and educator whose work in three genres—fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction—focuses strongly on place, culture, and the natural environment. I have an especially deep interest in Central Asia, where I lived and worked for four years, and I’ve traveled widely across Asia and twice bicycled throughout Great Britain. I earned degrees in creative writing from Bowling Green State University (BFA) and Eastern Washington University (MFA). I’ve taught writing and literature for nearly two decades and conducted numerous workshops, both in the U.S. and abroad. I currently live with my wife (an ethnic Russian Kazakhstani) and two cats in Corvallis, Oregon, where I teach at Oregon State University and am at work on a novel. I’m available for workshops, readings, and related areas. Please contact me through my website listed above.
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- Remembering Dolly Parton through her writing for children and adults August 28, 2026Over the past week, Dolly Parton has been remembered for her music, her star power, her advocacy and her philanthropic contributions. But she was also an author. In today’s episode, we remember the country star through two of her books. In 2022, Parton and co-author James Patterson spoke with Morning Edition’s Rachel Martin about their […]
- Chang-Rae Lee on whether his new novel 'A Tender Age' is autobiographical August 27, 2026Chang-Rae Lee’s new novel is filled with some of his own memories, like worrying about being picked last for dodgeball and sizing up his fellow Asian American classmates to determine who was most “foreign.” Lee says, unlike some of his other novels, these autobiographical elements populate A Tender Age. In today’s episode, the author speaks […]

