After earning a journalism degree, I worked briefly as a newspaper reporter and editor. For the next three decades, I used my writing and editing skills in a variety of communications and PR jobs in the nonprofit sector and for the UN.
A women’s writing retreat sparked an interest in flash and short fiction. When larger stories demanded to be told, I found a new passion in writing stories that illuminated the dichotomies in the human condition; stories that demonstrate joy and redemption can exist in the face of pain and tragedy.
I’ve called a few places home: Houston, TX; Washington, DC: Geneva, Switzerland. Now, home is a farmhouse in the mountains of southwest Colorado where my husband and I live, work and play…and try to keep up with a chubby calico named Lucy.
My other creative outlet is serving as managing director for a non-profit theatre festival called Durango PlayFest which helps playwrights develop new work.
OTHER STUFF
THAT NAME: It’s Czechoslovakian. Pronounced micka-len-check. Both my parents spoke Czech before they spoke English. While I never picked up the beautiful language, I can ask what time it is or call you a little monkey (or large donkey) in Czech. I have, however, mastered the art of baking kolaches, a Czech pastry.
EARLY YEARS: I grew up in a small Texas town (population 1,200) and decided to attend a university with a student body of 50,000. Culture shock, to say the least.
FAVE AUTHORS: Donna Tartt, Haruki Murakami, John Irving, Donald Ray Pollock
FAVE FOOD: Popcorn, Dutch baby
FAVE DRINK: Unsweet iced tea, bubbly
OTHER INTERESTS: Baking, cooking, sitting in a rocker on my porch
INDULGENCE: Watching too much streaming TV (but I call it ‘research’)
