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Hopping Fun Creations

Games, Stories, Jazzy Content

My Career (So Far)


Paleontologist Jorge Calvo gave me a hands-on tour of his massive dinosaur dig in Patagonia, Argentina. Ready to create a book or game about science? It's one of my favorite topics. Let's talk. (Photo: Sergio Stinco.)
Paleontologist Jorge Calvo gave me a tour of his massive dinosaur dig in Patagonia, Argentina.

I LOVE science! (Photo: Sergio Stinco.)


CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER, Hopping Fun Creations
My content development and creative services company has many happy clients (left), collaborations, and successful projects aimed at both commercial and education audiences.

SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR, Smithsonian Enterprises
Generated ideas, editorial strategies, and prototype content for an undisclosed startup.

EDITOR, The Story of Science, by Joy Hakim (Smithsonian/HarperCollins)
Titles: Aristotle Leads the Way, Newton at the Center, and Einstein Adds a New Dimension. Award-winning series of narrative nonfiction.

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, Inanimate Alice
I advised and developed content and strategies for this digital fiction project.


PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, Aristoplay
Aristoplay specializes in board games that families can enjoy together. I developed games from idea to store shelf, including Mars 2020, NOVA True Science, Top Dog, The Play's the Thing, Herd Your Horses, and more.

FOUNDING EDITOR, SuperScience magazine, Scholastic
We surpassed circulation goals for all three years of my leadership and won several AEP and Parent's Choice awards. I started my career at Scholastic as a writer and editor at Electronic Learning, Teaching and Computers, Dynamite! and many other magazines for kids and teens.

(CONTINUING) EDUCATION

B.A., English and French, Kalamazoo College

Video Game Writing Master Class (New York University)

Certified in English as a Second Language (Washtenaw Literacy)

Certified in French Language (CAVILAM, Vichy, France)

Creating Comic Books with Teaching Artist Jerzy Drozd

Online Courses:

Building Bots for Journalism: Software You Talk With (Knight Center)

Comic Books and Graphic Novels (Univ of Colorado, Prof. William Kuskin)

Introduction to Immersive Journalism (VR)

Understanding Media by Understanding Google Live! (Knight Center)

Transmedia Storytelling with Alison Norrington (Digital Book World)

Video Games and Learning (Univ of Wisconsin)

Electronic Literature (Prof. Mark Sample)

World101x: Anthropology of Current World Issues

A History of Art for Artists, Animators and Gamers (CalArts)

GROUPS, PEOPLE, AND SITES I LIKE

I owned a bookstore, with my husband Chris, in downtown Ann Arbor when brick and mortar ruled (early 1990s). We also created a niche-market direct mail catalogue.
I owned a bookstore, with my husband Chris, when brick and mortar ruled (early 1990s).

We also created a niche-market direct mail catalogue.
Board Game Designers Forum (bgdf)
Along with Board Game Geek, this is my go-to place for learning how to design, prototype, play test, and publish board and card games.
The Authors Guild
I urge every author to join. This website was built using the super-easy Authors Guild Sitebuilder. The guild also offers free contract reviews for members, an incredibly useful service for wading through pages of legalese and keeping up on the latest terms.
National Association of Science Writers (NASW)
One of my favorite groups has several lively listserv discussion groups and a job board for science writing and editing. A grant program allowed me to "tech up" and "smarten up" in this fast-moving digital age.
The Planetary Society
I interviewed former head Lou Friedman for my Space Rocks book. The Planetary Society backs what I believe is the most important space mission of all—tracking NEOs (near-earth objects) so that we can avoid or mitigate the next big impact.
The Mars Society
I've been a space geek since the Apollo years, when I was a kid, and attended one of the Mars Society conferences. In my view, space exploration isn't a luxury or a side venture. It's front and center, a necessity and our ultimate destiny. If we humans don't do it, who will? I'd love to produce an updated version of my classic board game Mars 2020.
National Center for Science Education
They're on the frontlines of the battle to keep teaching evolution in science classes. If you join, ask for a clever t-shirt to help spread the word (e.g., 1,000 scientists named Steve who believe in evolution).
Washtenaw Literacy
I'm passionate about teaching immigrants English so that they can participate fully in our culture and we can be enriched by theirs. I started tutoring and leading conversation groups with Washtenaw Literacy back in the mid-1990s.
Teachers of English to Students of Other Languages (TESOL)
I presented twice at TESOL conferences, on the topic of using games to teach adult immigrants, and met some amazing international educators. Members can access a treasure of peer-reviewed educational materials, including a few of my contributions.
Antonio Rocha, Physical Storyteller
I took a four-hour workshop from Antonio in mime, body language, projecting story with the body (especially the eyes), creating the illusion of animals with just three traits, and more. A treat.
Soaring Stories with Regi Carpenter
I met Regi at the Taos Storytelling Festival and took her uplifting workshop on the spoken word craft. She's mesmerizing live, but you can get a taste of her talent by listening to a few stories on her website.
Comics Are Great (Jerzy Drozd)
Tune into weekly podcasts with comic book artists and writers, all archived here along with other sequential art goodies. If you're lucky enough to live in southeast Michigan, sign up for Jerzy's comic book classes. I did! And loved them.
Leisa Thompson Photography
Leisa took the professional photos of me here on my website. Her photojournalism work is stunning.
Sergio "Saurio" Stinco
Sergio is an engineer, teacher, photographer, opinionated thinker, and all-round fascinating guy. He graciously took me to a dinosaur dig in Patagonia, Argentina, where he lives. The experience was unforgettable.
Proyecto Dino (Patagonian Megabeasts)
The site is in Spanish, but the intent is clear—excavate and educate the world about some of the best megabeasts on the planet.

Here's a nice look through my 3D "book plus," featuring a model of an Egyptian mummy.

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