I have been writing since 1978, when I took poetry classes at the Womans Center in Los Angeles. Then I expected writing would be a hobby. I was surprised when the hobby became an essential part of my life. Now, almost 30 years later, I can reflect over career as a journalist and an author.

I have written three books: Jump Rope Magic, a picture book published by Scholastic, Inc., Claiming Kin: Confronting the History of an African American Family, a memoir published by St. Martins Press; and Beyond Stitch and Bitch: Reflections on Knitting and Life, published by Beyond Words Publishing.

I became a full-time journalist in 1988. I've worked for newspapers in Jackson, Miss., Dayton, Ohio, and Cleveland, Ohio, where I was a metro columnist for four years.

In 2001, I left the newsroom to teach at a university where I was introduced to blogs, bulletin boards and other types of new media. I realized I'd been sleeping through a revolution. So I went back to school to study visual communication and design.

Now, when I go out to report and write, my mind is on more than facts and sources. I think about stories and ways to tell them. I think about combining words, sounds and pictures to create an experience for the reader, viewer or listener.