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Ever since the 2nd grade Cyclops
story [which the whole class bugged him to read aloud], Barry
has been hooked on writing. At age 14, he completed an
epic-sized 350 page novel of a barbarian, but at the time,
needless to say, the quality of the story was less than epic.
So, rather than inflict this z-grade material on the hapless
public, he honed his fledgling skills by joining the staff of
his high school newspaper, and contributed a short story to the
school literary magazine, The Luminary. Indeed, the caliber of
his writing was definitely improving, much to the relief of his
readers and teachers. In college, he was a campus news editor of
The Wooden Horse newspaper, and Editor-In-Chief of the college
literary magazine, The Obelisk, which won the 1980 Florida State
award for Best Typography and Layout for college literary
magazines. At this time, Barry’s talent could be worthy of
mentioning at the bottom of page 56 of the local home town
newspaper next to the pet store advertisement. Pressing onward
in his literary career, he wrote short stories which appeared in
Starsong and Anomaly Science Fiction Magazine, as well as poetry
that was published in The American Poetry Anthology. This was
followed by more articles in Mothertongue Magazine, Connexions,
and The Carolina Communicator. Although not a mass-media king,
Barry continued his efforts. Three of Barry’s children’s books
about Native Americans, Children Of The People, Young Visions,
and The Web Of Life were published by the American Indian
Celebration of Arts, Heritage, and Education in conjunction with
their education program. Over 120,000 copies of these books were
distributed in 14 states and Canada. A fourth children’s book,
Walk In Our Moccasins, was published by the Gwinnett Council For
The Arts and used in conjunction with their cultural program The
Festival Of Fires, endorsed by the 1996 Olympic Committee. Barry
has contributed articles to UPBEAT Entertainment News Syndicate,
and currently is penning a young adult novel and several scripts for Nite Owl Productions. He lives in Florida
[dodging the
occasional hurricane or two] with his partner Janet. In the days of his
youth, he was a sergeant in the Army, working on cobra
helicopters as a crew chief. He continues his literary pursuits,
and perhaps, you might see some of his work on your journey
through life.
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Contributing Editor