Journalism Experience

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Contributing Editor and Columnist – May  2018-Present
Assign and edit long-form features, profiles, and articles on arts, books, and travel. Manage coverage of books. Write weekly column on books.

Freelance writer, May 2018-Present
Published by LA Review of Books, Los Angeles magazine, Rolling Stone, the Guardian, Time Out, HGTV, WebMD, and Atlanta magazine, among other outlets.

Warners Bros. Discovery, June 2020-Nov. 2024
Copy editor
Copy edit food, homes, gardening, and travel content for HGTV.com.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution – March 2006-May 2018
Features Editor
Assigned and edited long-form narrative features, profiles, and articles on travel, arts, entertainment, food and books. Recruited, trained and managed freelance writers. Collaborated with photographers, videographers and producers on packaging content for print and digital.

Creative Loafing Atlanta, Sept. 1997-March 2006
Associate Editor
Managed staff of writers and editors to produce weekly food, arts, film, and music sections, plus eight annual special sections for Atlanta’s leading alternative weekly.

Teaching Experience

Decatur Writers Studio, Nov. 2016-May 2018
Director
Programmed year-round writing classes and summer writing camps; recruited author instructors; organized promotional events; managed social media promotions

Emory University
Instructor, Writing Arts Criticism, Journalism Program

Emory University Continuing Education
Instructor, Creative Nonfiction Writing; Personal Essay Writing; Travel Writing; Capstone Project

San Miguel Writers Conference
Instructor, The Art of the Scene in Narrative Writing

Education

MFA in Creative Writing, Nonfiction
Queens University of Charlotte, N.C.

BA in Journalism, Print Media
University of South Carolina, College of Journalism

Select Awards / Accolades

Writing
Best Arts Criticism, 2020 Society of Professional Journalists Green Eyeshade Awards, 2nd place, book reviews
Best Travel Writing, 2017 Society of Professional Journalists Green Eyeshade Awards, 1st place, “Discover Georgia’s Barrier Islands”

Video
Best Documentary, 2019 Southeastern Emmy Awards, executive producer, “Bronco Goes to Camp”

Lectures, Panels, and Readings

AJC Decatur Book Festival, video interview with author Ron Rash, 2020
San Miguel de Allende Literary Conference, lecturer, 2019, 2021
To Outline or Not to Outline, Broadleaf Writers Conference, moderator, 2017
Essentials of Narrative Nonfiction, Hub City Writers Project, lecturer, 2016
Diversity in Literary Criticism, Decatur Book Festival, panelist, 2016
Fact. Vs. Truth in Narrative Nonfiction, Decatur Book Festival, moderator, 2015
Women on the Verge of a Breakdown/Breakthrough, DBF, moderator; 2013
Write Club reading series, author; 2014
True Story! reading series, author; 2010, 2013
How to Run a Successful Freelance Writing Business, Atlanta Press Club, panelist; 2009

Fellowship and Conferences

Boston University Power of Narrative Conference, 2017
Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Conference; 2013, 2015
Fellow, Hambidge Center for the Arts & Sciences; 2013
Neiman Conference on Narrative Journalism, Harvard University; 2002

Related Volunteer Work

Bombay Beach Lit Fest, inaugural planning committee, 2023, 2024, 2026
Decatur Book Festival, planning committee, 2013-2018
Decatur Book Festival, programming committee, 2013-2018
Society for Features Journalism Excellence in Features Writing, judge; 2010-2012
Association of Alternative Newsweeklies Awards, arts features judge; 2008-2009

Select Published Works

Books
Moon Puerto Rico, 7th edition, Hachette/Avalon

Articles
‘Zenith Man’ a Wild Ride of Love, Death and Justice in Small-Town Georgia, AJC, Feb. 16, 2024
Crystal Wilkinson Conjures the Past for Evocative Food Memoir, AJC, Jan. 19, 2024
‘Saving the Georgia Coast’ a Study in Political Activism, AJC, Jan. 12, 2024
Lauren Groff Upends Captive Narrative with ‘Vaster Wild,’ AJC, Sept. 8, 2023
An Examined Past Illuminates the Present in Ann Patchett’s ‘Tom Lake,’ Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Aug. 11, 2023
Poster Art Starts a  Panic in New Kevin Wilson Novel, AJC, Nov. 4, 2022
The Delight and the Horror: A Conversation with Heather Havrilesky, LA Review of Books, Feb. 26, 2022
What’s the Deal with the Doxie Tombstone at Hollywood Forever?, LA magazine, Oct. 1, 2021
Nun’s Visions, Ambitions Propel Enthralling ‘Matrix,’ AJC, Sept. 2, 2021
Poet Natasha Trethewey on Her Bittersweet Relationship with Atlanta, Atlanta magazine, Sept. 1, 2020
Zora and Langston: How a Friendship Sparked and Doused the Harlem Renaissance, AJC, March 2019
The Mysterious Allure of Marfa, Texas, AJC, Oct. 2018
2,000 Nights and Counting for Blues Musician Mudcat, Intown Living, Oct. 2018
How a Chef Disrupted Disaster Relief Efforts in Puerto Rico, AJC, Sept. 2018
After the Storm: Puerto Rico Still Recovering 5 Months Later, AJC, April 2018
‘Still Hungry in America’ Revisits 1967 Photo Project that Changed Food Stamp Policy, AJC, March 2018
How An Unknown Musician Once Saved Townes Van Zandt’s Life, Rolling Stone, Nov. 2017
What a Long Strange Trip It’s Been, AJC, Nov. 2017
Lucinda Williams Conjures Ghosts of Highway 20, AJC, April 2017
Little St. Simons: Exclusive Barrier Island is Bird-Watcher’s Wonderland, AJC, June 2016
Sapelo Island: Geechee Community Endures, But Just Barely, AJC, June 2016
St. Simons: Kayaking the Salt Marshes of Glynn County, AJC, June 2016
Cumberland Island: Visitors Benefit From Push-Pull Efforts to Preserve, Share Natural Wonder, AJC, June 2016
Tybee Island: Popular Coastal Destination Is Having a Culinary Moment, AJC, June 2016
The Fugitive’s Sister, AJC, Oct. 2014
Preserving Flannery O’Connor’s Legacy at Andalusia, AJC, April 2014
Rincón Beckons Visitors to Puerto Rico’s West Coast, AJC, Jan. 2014
Pied Piper of the Beltline, AJC, Oct. 2013
Ponce Recalls 19th Century Colonialism in Puerto Rico, AJC, Oct. 2012

Essays
Home for the Holidays, AJC, Dec. 2013
Land of Shannon, Full Grown People, Sept. 2013
Box of Stones, The Gettysburg Review, Autumn 2010
Augusten Burroughs: The Craft of Memoir Writing, The Chattahoochee Review, Fall 2010