My background and core values are heavily influenced by having lived and worked in small and medium-sized towns for most of my life.​​ In addition to being a working champion of all things "small-town," I have an unquenchable curiosity for learning and an inherent belief that things can always be better.  ​I have what often feels like a life-long gravitational pull toward working with and promoting certain sectors: mission-driven nonprofits, small-town government, public education, affordable housing, behavioral health, economic development initiatives, and tourism. My upbringing in a middle-class suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, by a steelworker and a public school teacher, likely influenced that trajectory. Living and working in a few tourism destinations along the way may have had a bit to do with it too. I have a 26-year background in corporate and non-profit communications, professional writing, public relations, project management, graphic design, events coordination, and brand deployment. Before leading the communications initiatives of corporations, municipalities, non-profits, and state tourism organizations across the Eastern United States, I was an award-winning journalist for over a decade. That experience formed the bone structure of the communications professional that I am today. In reality, it all started when I was offered a job as a reporter with a large daily newspaper while I was still in college. Armed with only a pen, notebook, and a hefty dose of insatiable curiosity, my formal career as a writer began. It more likely germinated in childhood. By the time I figured out how to turn letters into words, I was spinning stories on the back of envelopes that my mother intended for Sunday School tithes.   Today, I am not only a professional writer but a visual communicator. I help organizations clarify their messaging to better share their stories and more deeply engage their audiences. I achieve this first by listening, learning, and then utilizing all of the traditional and digital tools at my disposal.   But at the heart of it all is the story. I chose WriterWorks as the name for my business because I understand that whether you're selling a product, striving to help provide a key service, or advancing a critical cause, the task of communicating is truly labor-intensive.  But that's where I go -  into the complexity, a Writer who Works to not only get the messages across clearly but who inspires your stakeholders to truly connect with the distinctive heart of your organization.  It is my calling and my passion to work with individuals in this endeavor.