I was raised in Charleston, West Virginia, not far from where my ancestors settled. The story of my family is much like other families that descended from Appalachian Irish immigrants. They were mountaineers and valley farmers that pioneered the wilderness of early America. One of my most cherished family photos is the photo of my great grandfather and great grandmother as a young couple sitting in their Sunday best in front of a ramshackle log cabin in the mountains of West Virginia. The values of resilience, hard work, and steadfast commitment to family were passed down. They are values clearly seen when looking back over family generations and clearly prevalent in the land from which these immigrants came.

 

I completed my undergraduate education in Virginia before returning to West Virginia for my first job and completing a graduate degree at West Virginia University. Most of my career has been devoted to developing research and educational programs in clean energy at colleges and universities in the U.S. I have also had a passion for history and consider myself a student of American writers such as David McCullough and Walter Isaacson. After several extended stays in Ireland, I became intrigued with Irish history and how specific events shaped the attitudes and politics of Ireland today. It was the connection of Ireland’s ancient past to recent events that inspired The Four Kings of Ireland. It’s a story about sixty years of war, murder, and betrayal that set Ireland on-course to become a divided land, and the hope of saints that still echos in that chasm today.

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The threads of Irish history are long. It's interesting how many events today have their origins in the past - long past - hundreds of years past. And because the threads are long, the fabric is strong; the values are strong. As an author, I want to write stories about characters who exemplify this strength. 

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