In
1968, Francis Jenkins--not the author's real name--was one of several writers with the small, independent newspaper called
The Pittsburgh Point to be given one of the Pittsburgh Press Club's annual Golden Quill awards. The author wrote weekly, covering visiting name jazz musicians' appearances. The award noted the author's coverage of Pittsburgh's substantial African-American communities, such as Pittsburgh's Hill District, which had not garnered much attention before.The author left
The Point in
1969 to attend the University of Pittsburgh full-time. Graduating in
1972 with a BA in Political Science, the author then won two scholarships for graduate programs at Pitt to become one of the first in the University's brand-new dual master's program.Final graduation in
1974 led directly to the author and partner moving to Daytona Beach, Florida, where the author gained first post-graduate employment as a job placement specialist at the Work-Oriented Rehabilitation Center (WORC, Inc.), a sheltered workshop for mentally, emotionally, and physically challenged adults. With no experience in that field, which the WORC director wanted, the author won the position against three other contenders, who also had no such experience but had only bachelor's degrees.Later, Francis became a teacher of English-As-A-Second-Language for foreign students at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona, working with Libyan and Venezuelan students.In
1979, the author gained employment in the profession of vocational rehabilitation counselor with the State of Florida.The author and life partner since
1985 moved into their new first home in Daytona.In
1989, the author took early retirement from the state to enter private practice--at double the state salary--as an independent vocational rehab counselor for workman's compensation clients. The author then added work evaluations to that practice, leading to expert witness testimonies in court for WC attorneys.Fleeing nuclear-powered rockets being launched at nearby Cape Canaveral, the couple, in the fall of
1997, moved to the Tallahassee area and then to their current home in the Florida woods.In
2005, Francis became an environmental activist, co-founded the nonprofit Environmental Alliance of North Florida (EANoF!) with environmentalist award-nominated Joy Ezell, and over the next three years, published articles on key regional environmental battles across north Florida in a small, independent national newspaper-formatted newsletter. In
2008, suffering burnout, Francis fully retired and began experimenting with different styles of science fiction writing.
Forever Ann was the first to meet the desired standards for what the author prefers to call a "dystopian to utopian science fantasy, feminist manifesta, and love story."
