When I was asked at a party recently what I did for a living, I replied, “I’m a programmer for an insurance company” which sent the person running for fear that the boredom contained in that statement might somehow stick to them. Who I really am is a software developer, writer, and musician. For now, I’ll skip the part about software developer because if you’re reading this, you’re probably more interested in the writer part. Suffice it to say, I have a degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Clarkson University (Let’s go Tech!). As a writer, I’ve written two one-act plays The Job Interview and Musical Chairs. In addition, I’ve written a full length play called A Taste of Shapespeare for the Sherburne-Earlville Drama where three characters from Shapespeare lead the audience through a number of famous scenes from many of the Bard’s greatest plays.The Reluctant Captain is my first novel. As a musician, I play trumpet in a local Big Band and every summer can be found as the first trumpet for the Smyrna Citizen’s Band. In addition, I also play in pit orchestras for many local high schools musicals. When not doing any of the above, I like to read, play roleplaying games with a group that I have played with since high school, and watch hockey. I have a love of all science fiction, but I am particularly a huge fan of Star Trek in all of its incarnations. I have boxes of comic books collected when I was a kid and I’m happy to say that I’ve been a fan of Captain America and The Avengers long before it was cool!