Steven J. McDermott — Biography
editor, litblogger, author, and now. . . podcaster
Born and raised in Seattle, Steven has bounced around western Washington most of his life with stints in California and Scotland adding seasoning. He currently lives on the easternmost of the San Juan Islands with his wife Therese. He received his MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles, and his BA in English and Philosophy (with a minor in Anthropology) from Western Washington University. He also has degrees in Landscape Design and Turf Management as well as a certificate in Golf Course Greenskeeping (earned in Scotland) from the City and Guilds of London (whose roots can be traced back to the mid-13th century).
He knows how to operate a backhoe and drive a dump truck and his many previous jobs include director-level high-tech management and management consultant positions. Prior to his tour in management, he worked a bunch of high-tech jobs—programmer writer, web/UI designer, technical writer, systems analyst, and project manager for software development and process improvement projects. Before working in tech land he ran his own landscape design business, worked on five different golf courses, poured and finished concrete, taught continuing education classes in creative writing and math and English to at-risk high school students. He's never worked in the fast food or a restaurant industry, but did work in several convenience stores. And there was that summer spent selling Burpee seeds door-to-door. He never had a paper route, although he filled in for a friend once, and ended up owing money after breaking three windows.
Winter of Different Directions
Steven J. McDermott's short story collection Winter of Different Directions is now availalbe for purchase.