I’m just making a note here about my current writing projects. I’ve switched my writing focus from business and technology to American history, with emphasis on the American Civil War. I’m working on some articles and a book project for publication, but in the meantime I’ve set up two websites related to this current interest:

Raleigh’s Wall and the American Civil War — An exploration of the circle of fortifications built in 1863 around the city of Raleigh, N.C. (where I live), to protect Raleigh, the capital of North Carolina, during the four-year conflict.

Civil War Nuances — Stories and reflections on the American Civil War, with an emphasis on ambiguities, ironies, and touching stories that I run across during my historical research.

These historical writing projects are not without precedent in my life as a writer. Following are some older American history projects I worked on:

Lewis and Clark: Mapping the West — During the late 1990s, I worked as a content producer for an educational firm, EdGate.com. While there, I was assigned to develop a site dedicated to the role of cartography during the Lewis and Clark expedition of 1804 to 1806. I collaborated with experts from the Smithsonian Institution and the Library of Congress on this project, acquiring part of the content from those experts, and writing part of it myself. Note: I left the company to take another job before the project was completed; I was not wholly satisfied with the ultimate outcome of the website. It’s good, but not as good as I would have liked.

Natalie Curtis Burlin (1875-1921): A Pioneer in the Study of American Minority Cultures — This is a web version of my 1994 article published in Connecticut Review. This article was the first extensive biography of Natalie Curtis Burlin, a musician and ethnologist who was an early researcher of Native American and African American music and folklore.

ARB — 21 Oct. 2020