As teachers' comments on my early report cards reflect, I've always been
    a daydreamer soaring through space.

   Over the years, while I quietly contemplated what might dwell beyond
   the bounds of Earth, a love of science fiction and astral discoveries grew
   like the expanding universe, and I knew one day all my notes and musings
   would form the foundation for an exciting, entertaining, and provocative
   space-travel novel.

I was born in northern Ohio (long ago), but grew up in Miami, Florida, and now live on the "Space Coast" near Cape Canaveral, where shuttle launches visible from my front yard set the stage for Alpha Rising.

When not contemplating space, involved in humanitarian activities, or writing, I love spending time learning from children and caring for animals. Other interests include nature, cooking, artistic pursuits and frivolous fun, and in my wildest dream I'd have a chance to go to Space Camp to experiment with zero gravity. My hope for the future is that many medical conditions will be successfully treated and cured in space station laboratories.

I have one grown son and one grandchild, and a strong faith that carries over in witness to God's miracles. At one point in my life I was given two weeks to live during treatment of a softball-sized cancerous tumor on my pericardium (the protective sac around the heart).

I consider that difficult year a gift.