I wrote my first short story while in first grade, and it was actually published in the school paper. How long ago was that? The newspaper was mimeographed – that's your clue.

Since then, I've been writing on and off, both fiction and non-fiction—sometimes for a living, sometimes for fun. I've written more than 100 articles in a variety of places, including a variety of gaming publications such as Casino, Casino Executive, Card Player, Dalton's Blackjack Review, Double Down, Thoroughbred Times, American Turf Monthly, and HorsePlayer along with in-flight magazines, and local newspapers. I even won a writing contest with a $1,000 first prize.

Since then—under my own name—I've written four how-to books for beginners on the most popular casino games like Craps, Blackjack, and Poker, plus one on horse racing. I also collected some of the short stories and essays I wrote about gambling "back in the day" into a small book.

In addition, like a well-worn 45, I'm playing my flip side, writing YA novels under my alter-ego, Rex Michaels. There are more in the works, too.

BTW - that's a portrait of me with that $1,000 check. Helluva time cashing it at the bank…