About Matthew
I have always loved to read. At least, as long as I can remember.
I was a sensitive kid who cried when the Velveteen Rabbit became a real rabbit, when the baby bird was reunited with his mother by the SNORT, and when Harry the Dirty Dog got his extra-soapy bath and his family finally recognized him again. Old Yeller ruined me.
I discovered the magic of stories when I found Lloyd Alexander’s Prydain Chronicles and anxiously awaited the arrival of each volume with my Scholastic book orders. I loved the exciting adventures of Taran the Assistant Pig-Keeper, and later Bink and Dolph of Xanth, Arthur Dent and Ford Prefect, and Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. I thrilled at witty turns of phrase, learning new words and ideas, and in getting wrapped up in someone else’s imagination.
Stories captivated me, but the creation of such potent magic seemed reserved for other, more special people.
For a creative writing assignment in elementary school, I wrote a ghost story so gruesome and frightening that I was both excited and afraid to share it. I learned that perhaps I had some of that story magic in me.
Piers Anthony and Douglas Adams taught me that writing could be fantastical and raucously funny, and that stories can take many shapes atop many foundations. There was freedom to be found in making peple laugh, and in doing what you love.
In college, the Beats showed me another side of literature—one of honesty, grit, and passion. I learned I could write the great American novel and pour out my angst on the altar of art, while reading Star Trek novels and experimenting with sleep deprivation. They taught me that art is not just about escape, but about truth.
After college I collected, designed, printed, and bound—by hand—two volumes of poetry, one of which I sold in local bookshops. I realized that all I needed to get published and share my art with the world was a little bit of gumption and big bit of motivation.
In 2013, after more than a decade of fitful effort, I re-dedicated myself to the pursuit of writing and storytelling. And here I am—on the cusp of sharing the products of my creativity with the world, and building a career doing what I love.
So glad you could join me.
