Constant Content

I graduated with a degree in Rhetoric and Writing in 1977. From there I went to law school and have been a practicing lawyer since then. My specialty has been insurance law and legal research and writing. I have handled hundreds of appeals to various state and federal appellate courts. I've written thousands of legal briefs patiently (usually) trying to explain various legal concepts to trial judges and appellate courts of all levels.

After all that writing, I still enjoy writing just for the fun of it. However, I pride myself on producing well researched content that can communicate difficult concepts to all types of readers.

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So, that's my public profile. I do really love writing. However, I think that my creativity and "spark" have suffered over the years because I have had to force my writing into the precise little box required by courts. Not to say that defending some of my clients has not required some creativity , but I want to recapture the original joy of writing what I'm interested in.

When I got my Rhetoric and Writing degree all of my classmates wanted to be poets or novelists. i dreamed of being a freelance writer for magazines and newspapers. This was in the mid-70's, back when authors mailed submissions into the slush pile and prayed. But since then, when people ask me what I would like to do if I was not practicing law, I always tell them I'd like to be a freelance feature writer. I still want that. So joining CC pushes me a little down that path.

The early articles I submit will likely still be law related because that's my comfort zone. But someday I want to "graduate" to writing articles like "10 Ways to Get Fleas off Your Dog" or "Amazing Places to Visit in Oklahoma."

This is gonna be fun.

I love that writing about fleas is a goal. I'm guessing you'll have fun here. Welcome!

Very cool - legal articles have a huge market. Welcome

I need that flea article!!!

Well, I completed and submitted my first article. As predicted it has a "legal" theme. We'll see if it passes muster.

To tell you the truth, I am a little intimidated by the stress that CC puts on grammar and punctuation. After over 30 years writing legal briefs and opinions to various appellate and supreme courts, I feel intimidated by CC?!

But I think I know what the problem is. In those briefs the focus is on content, persuasion and argument. I have never, ever, had a boss, judge or opposing counsel comment on or complain about, or even indicate that they care about, grammar and punctuation. That's not the focus of the legal exercise. Of course, bad grammar or punctuation in a legal brief can lose you credibility and can detract from your argument. But the court will never focus on that in argument or give you feedback on it. They're usually just thrilled that someone's given them a decent road map to some convoluted area of law, or a way to wrap their head around the facts they have before them.

Not to say that I begrudge CC their focus on those things. I think its great, and critical to CC's business model. I also think this is a great exercise for me to present content to someone who actually will give me strong feedback on grammar and punctuation.

Again...this might be fun. Thanks for the welcome here.