About Me — L. Wachi. Having been raised on the East Coast…
By: Chira Lois
Tags: Introduction, About Me

Having been raised on the East Coast, Texas offered a sultry and seductive culture I’d never experienced before, and I loved every minute of my time in the state.

My laptop goes wherever I go. Here, it’s on the chair next to me, so not it’s pictured but it’s definitely there. Also, the person I’m smiling at is a dude named Jeff, my dear husband and the love of my life. Picture Provided by Author.

I wrote my first short story with a ballpoint pen on ruled paper when I was in eighth grade. It was a romance. The boy’s name was Lorenzo and the girl’s name was Mimi. They were in love, I think.

I don’t remember anything else about the story other than my English teacher liked it, and that I really enjoyed the experience of writing. Who knew I was a YA author way back then?

Life in Texas

Years later, a desire for adventure took me to Texas, and I graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio, let’s just say, sometime in the late 1990s. I worked at the university for a few years after graduation.

My favorite memories of Texas will always be road trips to the U.S.-Mexico border to buy cheap Tequila on steamy hot summer days under an infinity of big beautiful blue sky.

The state has an amazing festival scene and being able to two-step the night away (I’m not kidding) to live Tejano music just about everywhere I went was over-the-top kind of fun like nothing else in the world.

As for writing, it has always been part of every job I’ve ever pursued. I’ve been a social science researcher where I wrote modules for public health software, a program manager where I wrote about the outcomes of crime prevention initiatives, and an editor for the one of the largest legal information providers in the world.

The world of freelance writing opens up

Back on the East Coast around 2010, I started freelance writing full-time. I liked the idea of being able to spend time with my family and still make a decent living.

My laptop and I arriving in Mombasa, Kenya. Picture Provided by Author

Traveling the world — finally an option

Eventually the opportunity to travel came into the picture. It was amazing to see the world all the while making money doing something I really loved.

Thanks to freelance writing, my family and I have traveled to several countries. In Africa, we sampled tasty food and saw breathtaking sights in Morocco, Kenya, and Tanzania. In Europe, we stopped in on relatives in France and Germany. And, Central America, we rubbed shoulders with the good people of Mexico and Costa Rica.

A decade of freelancing leads to Medium

Ten years on, I’m still writing. When I first started freelancing, I wrote and edited thousands of articles on business, finance, entrepreneurship, and careers for websites like USA Today and the Houston Chronicle.

These days, I prefer writing society and culture topics. Though totally not a tech person, I’ve become an accidental expert on remote technology, laptops, wireless internet, and productivity apps.

Since I first heard about the Medium Partner Program, I wanted to give it a go to find out if I could turn it into something. After much procrastinating, I’m ready to act. I just need to put my nose to the grindstone in 2021 and make things happen. Thanks for reading my bio and I look forward to reading yours.

I’m a clap happy person, so please don’t hesitate to slide me a bunch of claps — just for the heck of it.

Please feel free to contact me in a private message on LinkedIn if you would like a price quote for my writing or editing services. I write and edit articles for websites, blogs, and magazines. I don’t come cheap.