About the Author
Questions? Just email me at toddvanhooser@yahoo.com
Copyright © 2010 Todd VanHooser
The Writer: I’ve been telling stories all my life. At some point just before high school, I started writing and actually had my first story published during my senior year in a small literary magazine. A degree in English and creative writing at the University of Missouri taught me some important lessons on writing and how raw talent will never meet its potential without constant practice, a little discipline, and an open mind. Over the last few years I’ve published a handful of short stories and subsequently seen them adopted in the classroom setting. The Barren Twelve is my first novel, but will by no means be my last.
The Teacher: I am now beginning my 8th year as an educator, and I am more excited than ever to be back in the classroom. During the 2006-07 year I was awarded the Teacher of the Year, and have had the pleasure of being invited into numerous classrooms to share short stories or discuss the process of writing. I strive to make the material relevant to the lives of my students and to open their eyes and hearts to aspects of literature they may have never before considered. The rewards of this profession are tremendous, and I am reminded of this fact every time a former student drops by my class to tell me how something we read or discussed touched their lives.
The Person: When I’m not writing, I love spending time with my family and friends, going out for sushi, losing myself in a good book, painting, playing with my little boy, or catching a great movie.
And of course I love sharing a good story.