I fell in love with stories at my grandmother's table. Growing up, I spent a lot of time in her Spanish-colonial home in West Hollywood. Her house was a lovely labyrinth of white stucco walls, framed folk art and fresh flowers - the smell of jasmine transports me there in a moment. But the center of her home was the dining room. That's where we'd celebrate Hannukah, Thanksgiving, Rosh Hashanah and whatever other smattering of American-Jewish traditions struck our fancy.
As any Jewish person worth their kosher salt does, we told stories. Some stories I heard over and over, but somehow, they were just as mesmerizing every time; it was the commitment the storyteller had. My grandmother and my father were both like that, whether it was the first or tenth time telling a story, they presented it with a conviction that belonged in Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. The red wine also helped.
This proclivity for story was subtly woven into me. That said, both of my parent's were journalists and my sister attended j-school - I wanted to do my own thing. I earned a bachelor's degree in violin performance. I was good, I could hold my own on the instrument but my heart wasn't quite in it. While my classmates yearned to tackle concertos by Tchaikovsky and Bruch, I spent hours writing papers. I structured research and arguments around the relevance of Bach's St. John's Passion and the spread of folk tradition through Bela Bartok's melodies. I played some concerts after graduation but found myself writing more than anything else. I successfully pitched my first magazine piece in 2015 and spent the past decade pouring myself into a writing career.
I earned a master's in Strategic Communication & Innovation from Texas Tech University and am currently earning a second graduate degree in writing from Johns Hopkins University. I'm a contributing author for “Reporting While Female,” a book set to release in 2025. I am also a stringer for the Washington Post and freelance for brands worldwide. In 2024, I received a Grand Gold Award in Column/Opinion writing from the CASE Circle of Excellence. My work has been recognized by the University Professional & Continuing Education Association (UPCEA), the American Advertising Federation, and the Association for Women in Communication.
