Some of my favorite authors are: Tom Perrotta, Jeffrey Eugenides, Tim O' Brien, Chuck Palahniuk, David Sedaris, Dave Eggers, and Haruki Murakami.

Outside of writing and reading, I mostly enjoy music. I play the drums and was in a band for many years. I also love hiking, trail running, snowboarding and snowshoeing.

I currently live in Colorado with my wife, Kelly.

LATEST NEWS...

MAY 2008

I read at Redbird Studio's 15th Anniversary celebration this month, as part of the Wisconsin Book Festival. Quite an honor to be asked to read at an event that celebrated Judy Bridges and her great efforts to create such an encouraging place for writers. She's helped me tremendously. Thanks, Judy, for all the people you've supported over the years!

APRIL 2008

April was a very good month.

The Mountain of Authors event at Pikes Peak Library District was a success, with a full house and plenty of authors selling books, networking, and speaking at panels. I managed to moderate the fiction panel without falling over, and met many fascinating minds to boot. Thanks, PPLD.

Also some really big news! I signed with literary agent Sandra Bond from Bond Literary Agency. I'm very excited to be part of her client list, and look forward to working with her in the future. She actually made the initial call on my birthday, so that was really cool.

MARCH 2008

Pikes Peak Library District was nice enough to invite me to participate as a moderator for the fiction panel at the 2nd annual regional authors' event, “Mountain of Authors."

The event showcases authors of the Pikes Peak region, and offers presentations about writing and publishing. The free program will be held from 10am-330pm, Sat, April 12 at East Library, 5550 N. Union Blvd. No registration is required.

You can read more about it on their BLOG. Please come join us. Should be a cool event!

Redbird Studio also graciously invited me back home to be a part of their 15th Anniversary Celebration in May. I will be a showcase reader and there will also be a "talk back."

This is a free event, and will be held at 630pm, Thurs, May 1st, on the main floor Social Room at the Marian Center, 3195 S. Superior St. in Bay View. Visit their WEBSITE for more information. Fun will be had by all!

FEBRUARY 2008

Well, although I didn't make it to the Top 100 in the Amazon ABNA Breakthrough Novel Award contest, I did get lots of positive feedback which I really appreciate.

Here's a blurb from Publisher's Weekly review of the whole manuscript:

"Told from Sid's point of view, this novel is a surreal and engrossing tale of a man in denial, coping with tragedy and learning how to stop being alone and move on with his life."

And here's what an Amazon Top Reviewer had to say about my excerpt:

"From what I've seen so far, Postcards from a Dead Girl is a wickedly funny and original story."

Thanks to everyone who posted a review and/or supported me through this contest. What a great experience.

JANUARY 2008

Exciting News! The Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest has selected my novel POSTCARDS FROM A DEAD GIRL as a semi-finalist. I'm now 1 of 836 from a pool of 5000 unpublished novel-length manuscripts. Visitors to Amazon.com are encouraged to read excerpts online and leave reviews to help choose the Top 100.

Publisher's Weekly also reviews the semi-finalists' full manuscripts, and Penguin editors will eventually choose the Top 10 finalists. Amazon customers then ultimately choose the winning manuscript, which will be published by Penguin with a $25,000 contract. I think there's also a 50" plasma TV at stake here, so help a guy out and leave a review! ;)

Several of my friends at Redbird Studio (where I spent many roundtable sessions getting this manuscript in shape) also made it to the semi-finals:

THE GHOST MOTHER, by Felicity Librie
EASILY AMUSED, by Karen McQuestion
THE PETOSKEY STONE, by Jon Olson

And I'm in the good company of many Pikes Peak Writers as well:

Beth Groundwater, VIRTUAL DEATH
Ian Healy, DEEP SIX
William Mason, PRIMORDIUM
Chris Myers, OFFSHORED
Bret Wright, NASTY
Rebecca Noel, THE VENTARI INCIDENT

Best of luck to everyone!

OCTOBER 2007

The fall issue of Wisconsin People & Ideas just came out. My story "Salting the Walks" is in it, and it looks great. Nice layout, cool photos. I feel like a proud papa. This is my first official print story, so I'm pretty excited about it. There's something about feeling that tangible paper. There is a reading for all the winners of the 2007 Wisconsin People & Ideas' short story competition on Thursday, October 11th. It's at Avol's Bookstore (5p-7p) in Madison, and it's part of The Wisconsin Book Festival. Sadly, I can't make it back from Colorado to participate, but I'm just happy to have gotten this far.

AUGUST 2007

This month I made the transition to high altitude, and became a member of Pikes Peak Writers here in Colorado. I participated in their 3rd annual live-reading/contest they've playfully dubbed "American Icon." About 70 people attended, including celebrity judges Carol Berg, Charles Kaine, and Barbara Samuel. I read an excerpt from my novel POSTCARDS FROM A DEAD GIRL.

The response was incredibly positive. I was awarded Audience Favorite, Best Overall, and Best Character. What a great reception from my new state! Thanks, Pikes Peak Writers, for a wonderful night and new beginning here in the West.

JULY 2007

Relocated to Rocky Mountains...

APRIL 2007

This month I was given the honor of reading at Redbird Studio's "Writer's Showcase." This annual event gives the general public a chance to meet the Redbird community (founded by Judy Bridges), sample some writer's work, and most importantly, eat cookies and drink wine. About sixty people attended, ten writers read, and fun was had by all. Novelists Lauren Fox, Shauna Singh Baldwin, Elaine Bergstrom, and poet John Lehman were there as well, to meet and greet with their latest books.

MARCH 2007

Just found out some exciting news. My short story "Salting the Walks" won second place in a statewide fiction contest held by the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters. The lead judge was acclaimed novelist Charles Baxter, and the story will be published in the fall issue of Wisconsin People & Ideas magazine. My thanks to the Academy. (I always wanted to say that.) But really, it's a wonderful honor.

FEBRUARY 2007

My short story "Forever Girl" appears in the February 2007 issue of HOBART. It's about unrequited love and carnival rides.