Jack and I …

It's been a long time, but the cover story I did on Jack Nicklaus is one of my favorite accomplishments, and is an example of what I do and how I do it.

In early 1983, Success Magazine planned a cover story for their June issue on Jack Nicklaus as a major businessman – a side of him few people knew. A writer was assigned, and somehow, the writer was not able to do the story. The cover was shot, and the deadline was a month away. The magazine started scrambling to find a writer who could get the job done and save the cover.

They called D. Keith Mano, an acclaimed novelist, and writer for Playboy and The National Review. Keith couldn't take the assignment, but he told the editors he knew the writer who would be perfect for the job: Marci Diehl. He and I had met at the University of Rochester's Writers Workshop, and Keith had become a great friend and mentor to me.

The editor called me and told me the situation, and emphasized how under the gun they – and I – would be. I had just enough time to get down to Hastings – on – Hudson, New York, and spend four days learning about a golf course project Nicklaus was involved in, interview Jack (no easy thing getting through his marketing people), and take in a day-long sales event Nicklaus was hosting for investors from New York City.

I flew back, wrote the story in four days – while juggling mom-duties with little ones – and delivered a full feature to Success on time. They edited only six sentences for space reasons. A triumph!

When the article appeared, Jack liked it so much he had reprints made to put into his own marketing kits.

And yes – he is an awesome, classy, intelligent guy with a great sense of humor.

Canandaigua Magazine

The stunningly beautiful Canandaigua Magazine is a Custom Publication put out by The Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, a Gannett newspaper in Rochester, New York.  It’s the “sister” of Rochester Magazine. When Rochester Magazine came out on the stands in my area, I was bowled over by the extremely high quality of the writing, design, print and photography – ranking right up there with the best of the regional & city magazines in the nation.

Great minds think alike – I was starting to miss writing features for magazines right at the same time Gannett planned to launch a new magazine for New York state’s fastest growing regions – The Finger Lakes www.visitfingerlakes.com

We were able to connect; I was asked to become a featured writer and assist in the development of the magazine as associate editor.

Four times a year, Canandaigua Magazine comes out and sells out in its area.  I have a long history of writing for quality magazines. I’m very proud to be a part of this one! I also write the back page essay “Last Word” on a frequent basis. You can read a sample of them on my Writing page.