Redheads are descended from cats. --Mark Twain
YOUR OTHER FAMILY DOCTOR (2024): In the post-Covid era, the U.S. veterinary industry is in crisis, facing a massive problem with employee retention which makes it increasingly difficult for pet caregivers to access quality healthcare for their companion animals. The veterinary professionals who remain also suffer from widespread mental health and quality of life issues. As a bastion of public health helping to ensure food safety and control the spread of infectious diseases, the veterinary profession is vital to society, and we all have a stake in its well-being, whether we are pet owners or not.This memoir examines the industry with a critical eye, using the narrator's experiences to illustrate why the pandemic is not entirely to blame for the profession's struggles, which are rooted in widespread poor management practices. This story also serves as a cautionary tale to pet caregivers so they can better navigate the animal healthcare system and avoid common pitfalls in obtaining care. Finally, it discusses potential ways to overhaul and reform the industry, such as enhancing the legal status of companion animals, creating veterinary "candy striper" programs, and supporting labor unions for veterinary professionals. Readers are invited to accompany the author on a journey which begins with idealism and traverses the depths of disillusionment before turning toward the future with a blend of trepidation and hope.CONSPICUOUS CONSUMPTION (2026): In the doldrums following New Orleans' heady Carnival season, an unspeakable horror stalks the streets, tearing its victims apart and defying Detective Dave Somers' best efforts to understand it before another grisly scene of death is discovered. Wracked with guilt at his slow progress on the case, Somers feels himself beginning to spiral out of control.Veterinary nurse Ashley Grey doesn't have time to worry about the bizarre and gruesome murders happening practically on her doorstep. Her patients need her, and her hospital is in crisis. But when someone Ashley loves is torn away from her, she knows she must do whatever she can to help the police with their investigation- since no one else has seen the monster and lived to tell about it.Together, two damaged people will stand against an apex predator- one that strikes without warning. Together, they will learn they have more in common than they first believed.Together, they will stop the monster by any means necessary- or die trying.STONE BABIES: DARK STORIES FROM THE BEFORE TIMES (2026): What scares you? What creeps into your head when you're trying to sleep? Do you shudder at tales of ghosts, vampires, or witches? Serial killers or demons? Creepy carnies?Beware. They all lurk here... though perhaps not always in the forms you expect.Or is it a different kind of fear that really haunts you? A rare, disturbing medical diagnosis? Environmental devastation? Losing your grip on reality? Failure at your chosen craft or profession? Sliding into addiction and knowing you cannot trust yourself? Losing a loved one- in any of the many ways that people can lose each other?The characters that populate these stories are afraid of all those things, too.Join them. Step back into a time before social media, influencers, and AI with these ten dark tales, all written 25-30 years ago.These babies have waited a long time for someone to pick them up and love them.THANK YOU FOR YOUR INTEREST. My books are available at a wide selection of online platforms, including Barnes & Noble, Apple, Tolino, Vivlio, Kobo & Kobo Plus, Gardners, Fable, Everand, Smashwords/Draft2Digital, & Amazon, as well as online libraries like BorrowBox.PLEASE NOTE: As an indie author who handles everything from writing, editing, & cover design to publishing & marketing by myself (on a budget of ZERO dollars or cents, beyond the cost of my internet connection!)... I'm not afraid to admit that my books have a few formatting "warts" which some readers may object to, because I'm still getting the hang of all this. (Well, all but the writing & editing parts, that is!) I recommend checking out the free samples available to read on Amazon- even if you choose not to use Amazon for purchases of any kind. I get that! If you have an e-reader, my e-books are a fraction of the cost of the paperbacks, for which I have limited control of pricing.THANKS AGAIN FOR STOPPING BY!
After some early success publishing short horror fiction in the small press of the late '90s, I set writing aside for years to give my blood, sweat, & tears to the veterinary industry, which would later chew me up & spit me out. After being fired for trying to educate cat caregivers about the harmful effects of declawing, I appeared in The Paw Project, a 2013 documentary about the veterinary industry's prioritization of profits over patients. I returned to writing in 2023 with Your Other Family Doctor, a memoir about my vet-tech years and how they inform my criticism of the industry. Since then, I've been enjoying creating & publishing the same kind of dark psychological and supernatural horror fiction I loved reading & writing in my twenties- and breathing new life into some of the stories I wrote all those years ago.
My influences & favorite authors include (but are not limited to!): Sylvia Plath, Stephen King, Poppy Z. Brite, James O'Barr, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Gillian Flynn, Lionel Shriver, Anne Rice, Margaret Atwood, Anthony Burgess, George Orwell, Peter Benchley, Edgar Allan Poe, Kathe Koja... and the '80s/'90s era of splatterpunk horror in general.
Bluesky is my preferred platform currently & that's where I am the most. I'd like to start doing more with my Substack soon!