I’m a writer, a sommelier, and a sellsword.
Actually I’m just a writer who loves a glass of syrah and a good fantasy epic — but that wasn’t always the case.
My road to writing was circuitous and uncertain at times. But now, five years in, I’m so grateful to have found the craft I’m going to spend the rest of my life perfecting. College helped, but copywriting made me the writer I am today.
The thousands of product descriptions I wrote taught me to spin meaningful copy from scant details; digital advertising taught me concision; direct-mail pushed me to tell a story that unfolds long after the end punctuation; and copyeditors taught me misplaced modifiers, suspensive hyphenation, and other grammatical conventions that I still geek out on daily.
My dad — a self-made mechanic, turned carpenter, turned sheet-metal worker, turned electrician, turned teacher and town inspector — instilled in me a real-life perspective and showed me what hard work looks like. My mom, a dedicated small business owner and the best damn dog groomer you’ve ever seen, did the same.
Captaining a rugby team taught me leadership and put gravel in my guts. Selling my car to study abroad in New Zealand expanded my worldview… and taught me the repercussions of impulsive actions.
My fiance taught me how to cook tomato sauce, taste wine, and eat oysters. My plants taught me patience.
All of these experiences — in life, work, school, and otherwise — played a key role in my development. And yet, after all of this, I can’t help thinking it was ony the prologue and the real story has just begun.
-Chris