I’m an online and print newspaper editor from Northeast Texas. I have been a journalist since I was a kid. I was also diagnosed with schizophrenia when I was nine at a hospital in Luling, Texas. Exactly how did I find that out at that age? Truth be told, I remember hearing voices from the time I was four.

My life actually ended up being completely different from the way I planned it. I originally intended to marry my high school sweetheart. But circumstances ended our relationship, and through happenstance I was placed in a group home. But my story is unique. In spite of this, I rose far and above the mire and muck and created a life for myself.

Here is how it happened. In 1980, at Christmas, my mom bought me a kid’s typewriter. I loved writing and was one of the best writers in my class. I was very good at writing stories that were short, to the point, and informative and interesting. I had command of both subject and audience. I didn’t mince words, and the reader had a clear understanding of the subject I was writing about. I published only two issues, but I was hooked.

A couple of years later I was in the fifth grade, and I was looking for a club to join. The journalism club had openings, and I loved writing and the news, so I gave it a shot. I interviewed the principal and got my first byline. I moved shortly thereafter and found myself in a different school. My teacher, Mrs. Norwood, asked us to write stories. I then whipped out my new newspaper, The Sulfur Bluff Newstory. I asked her if she would like to have a few copies made. She said yes, and I printed some copies of the paper. I went to the office and got a few copies done and stapled. When I was on the way back to class, a friend of mine looked at me and said he wanted to know if he could have one. I told him it was 15 cents. He then proceeded to hand me a dime and a nickel.

I didn’t know if at the time, but I had just founded the Sulfur Bluff school paper. My big break as a school reporter occurred on January 28, 1986. That day, just as the paper had finished printing, news broke about the space shuttle Challenger exploding during launch. After quickly confirming the story, I interviewed students on the school bus.

After I moved to Breckenridge, Texas, I was back in the special ed class, but I still wanted to write. One day, I managed to finish my work way earlier than expected. So, I started brainstorming and came up with a new publication. I called it The Horseshoe. I filled it with plenty of really good content.

Unbeknownst to me, my teacher Mrs. Boyd, was peering over my shoulder, and taking an interest, she and I went to the main building to find Mrs. Robbins to show her the newspaper. Impressed, Mrs. Robbins asked me to be the reporter for the Life Skills Center for the Saddle n Spur. I wrote a few articles and thoroughly enjoyed reading my work in the school paper.

A few months later, it was summertime, then back to school. By chance, I was eager to see what I could do with the idea for The Horseshoe. I put two dummies together, the latter of which got printed.

The first issue covered the miraculous rescue of Midland, Texas toddler Jessica McClure. The whole nation was transfixed by the event, and everyone cheered, and shed a tear or two of joy when she was pulled up from the well. I remained the editor for three years. But it was my senior year that changed my focal point. I was determined to start asking tougher questions. And, needless to say, I got in trouble.

After graduation, like I said, I wound up in a group home. It is here that another interesting chapter began. That is when the writing bug hit again. I started the San Angelo Echo-Editor on March 10, 1997. I had just six readers for the first issue but grew to 40 subscribers and a few ads at the end of the first year. I have had a long, successful run. I have been featured in radio commercials, program ads and media guides. My website is read all over the world.

My accomplishments include traveling to Washington, DC, and covering the 2001 National Scout Jamboree, interviewing Dr. Sergei Khrushchev, and former President Bill Clinton during a February 2008 campaign stop. I am now editor of The Texas Post, an online and full color print publication. I love writing daily. And, I hope others enjoy my writing, too.