I've been writing stories, poems, and songs from as far back as I can remember, and books have always a huge part of my life. 

I remember getting in trouble in math class for hiding a novel behind my textbook - which probably explains why I still mix up mean, median, and mode. But that book (Stephen King's The Stand, if memory serves) was totally worth it. 

I mode mean it! (If you stop reading after that terrible dad joke, I understand.)

I started playing guitar when I was 11 and had the good fortune to play guitar or bass in bands throughout high school and college and beyond. I still play when I can - a guitar is never too far out of reach and a new song tumbles out every now and then. 

You can check out a few of them here if you'd like. 

I'm originally from the Chicago area but now live with my wife, daughters, and scruffy dog Henry in south Louisiana. 

Did I mention I've been writing stories for a while? Here's proof!:

You'd never guess it, but I was writing a twisty mystery filled with murder and mayhem!

• For publishing-related inquiries, contact Stephen Fraser at the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency

• To read some of my writing about books and music, go here.

• For anything else, my email is slimchancepress[at]gmail.com

*Update that the winners were recently posted on Vivian's blog, and my story placed 16th out of 756 entries - pretty neat! The entries were really incredible - amazing to see the stories that can be told in only 50 words.

Here's my #50PreciousWords story - dedicated to the middle-school student I saw bravely speak up at a recent library board meeting.

 I had a blast thinking up and writing this 200-word story for Kailei Pew's 2nd annual Kids' Choice KidLit Writing Contest. 

The word count limit led to some tough choices for what to include and what to omit - like building a Jenga tower, adding and taking away words to see what would work without making the whole thing collapse. 

With about 30 min on the deadline to spare, I hit my final save and sent it off. Hoping the kid-judges enjoy it and all the other entries. Such a neat idea, and I'm sure it's a lot of effort to put together - so thank you, Kailei!

The Wishes

Middle Grade (200 words)

The Wishes

We found the note on the way to school, rolled up inside a glass bottle Marcus threw in the air and let smash to the ground between me and Arden.

He was always doing dumb stuff like that. 

We were his best friends anyway.

The ragged paper stuck out. I picked it up and read its faded words aloud.

TO WHOEVER SEES: YOUR FIRST WISH WILL COME TRUE

Marcus and Arden laughed and walked on – but something stopped me.

“I wish I was a bear.”

I said the words softly, picturing my bear-self roaming the halls of Roosevelt Middle. 

Roaring in the faces of bullies. Clawing my way through the rest of the school year. 

Finally fierce.

I saw Marcus and Arden turn back and see me. Their eyes wider than bike tires. Their mouths frozen O's.

“Ca-Calysta?” Marcus said, collapsing to his knees.

Arden sprinted towards me, diving to grab the piece of paper. 

I heard her whisper. Then she was gone.

Not gone. Transformed. Above my head, I watched her soar. Eagle-Arden.

Marcus walked forward, shaking.

He picked up the note. 

“I’m sorry Calysta. Arden too.”

He closed his teary eyes.

 “I wish to have my friends back.”

Update 3.1.23: 

Just learned that my entry was an honorable mention in the contest - what a neat thing! Congrats to all who entered.

 I wrote about Mike Chen's (very good) Vampire Weekend for this month's Performer Magazine.

It's hard to write realistically about music in fiction, and Mike nails it here - along with a first-rate, original vampire story with heart (...and a little blood).

Check out the full review and the book!

I recently came across my review of a Guy Clark concert from 2012 that was originally published in Southeast Performer Magazine (which no longer exists). Guy passed away four years later in 2016; his last performance was in 2013 - not long too after this show. As I noted in the review, he was struggling through this performance, but it it was beautiful in the effort - and the songs stood strong.

Guy Clark

The Old Rock House, St. Louis, MO

February 29, 2012

“A crafty veteran plays hurt but gets the save.”

 The first image that the audience at The Old Rock House saw of legendary singer/songwriter Guy Clark was of a man limping to the stage, supported by a cane, accompanied by longtime collaborator Verlon Thompson. That image set the tone for the night, as Clark, who recently underwent knee replacement surgery and has dealt with other health issues over the last few years, struggled against a failing voice and a little performance rust and relied heavily on Thompson throughout the show.

And yet, the goodwill that Clark and his masterful songs have built over his nearly five decades-long career, along with his self-deprecating humor and Thompson’s spry playing and quiet enthusiasm, gave the night a special feeling. Whether it was singing along to classics like “L. A. Freeway” or listening attentively to an unreleased beauty like “My Favorite Picture of You,” the audience seemed to rise up to support someone whose songs have meant a great deal to them, and a man who has meant a great deal more.

 That’s not to say that the night was a charity case. Clark’s gift has always been in crafting poignant lyrics that show love, loss, and even whimsy without sentimentality, from “The Randall Knife” to “The Cape” to “Homegrown Tomatoes,” and that rare gift was not diminished. Nor was Clark’s sense of humor, as he joked that he was starting to sound like his gravelly friend Kris Kristofferson, who once told Willie Nelson that he was having throat problems. According to Clark, Willie’s reply was: “How can you tell the difference?”

 As he made his way slowly off stage, mouthing “No more” with a warm smile to calls for an encore, Guy Clark showed that, like a character in one of his songs, he would not let sentimentality get in the way of a truthful, funny, heartfelt moment.

- Jason Peterson

One of my favorite live records - check it out if you haven't heard it