I'm rebuilding the site this weekend (11/3/2011), so it's gonna look messy for a bit....

About me

Hi, I’m Andrew. I’m a writer, editor, magazine guy, and Web site developer. My thing is the presentation of information: making any topic clear, interesting, and sometimes fun — because that’s how you get people to read about it.

The professional stuff

I’m a veteran (15+ years) writer who’s worked for magazines, newspapers, and Web sites including PC Magazine, USA Today, National Underwriter, CNET, the Roanoke (Va.) Times and Blue Ridge Business Journal.

My work’s appeared in those pubs, plus the Columbus Dispatch, Kiplinger’s, Richmond Times-Dispatch, and Smart Money magazine, to name a few.

I’ve also been a magazine editor, have launched three publications, created too many Web sites to name, done marketing and PR work, and am in the process of raising my karmic comeuppance in the form of a nine-year-old son.

So yeah, I keep busy.

The personal stuff

I love science and history, and I spend way too much time teaching myself about all sorts of odd subjects. These mini-obsessions last a week or two: geocaching, hiking, woodworking, programming, paddleball, racquetball, cooking, and more. Some I stick with longer than others, but I get something out of them all.

I’m a second-rate amateur photographer and I love image and video editing. I enjoy thinking about the presentation of information — what’s the best way to tell someone what they need to know?

My degree’s in philosophy. It’s been more useful than you might think.

I read lots of non-fiction — history and science for the most part, but anything, really. And I read a ton of fiction — sci-fi, mystery, horror, or just plain lit.

The miscellaneous stuff

I’m a grounded geek — I love technology, but it has to be useful. So I play a lot with Web sites, building things just for the heck of it: message boards, wikis, photo albums, polls, and so on, just to see if I can make them crazy easy to use. (For no other reason, I built my own bit.ly-style URL shortener at fllw.me, and created a customized Web-based mail system just for myself.)

I find coolness in the mundane.

I’m the guy in the office who everyone comes to if they need computer troubleshooting, want to buy a digital camera, feel like starting a blog, and so on.

And I do most of my writing with a fountain pen or a pencil.

Cool stuff I’ve done

  • Gone cross-country by Greyhound over 30 days
  • Been interviewed on “60 Minutes,” “Good Morning America,” and “The Today Show”
  • Dug for — and found — dinosaur fossils in Montana (ask to see my hadrosaur metatarsal)
  • Created and ran a game show

And that’s me. Well, barely. It’s a vague outline anyway. If you came here wondering “Who is this guy,” maybe you have at least a few answers.

Want more? Drop me a line!