Joel McIver

I found my layouts for Myspace on pYzam.com , but they also have really funny pictures !
Joel McIver, was born on a frosty January morning in West Islip, New York. He spent his first 17 years being raised in North Babylon, New York, the third son of public school teachers. A month before he started his senior year of high school, Joel's parents shipped him off to North Carolina to live with one of his older brothers. Not because he was a problem child, or that they wanted to get him away from the mean streets of New York, but to qualify for in-state tuition fees since he had decided to attend college in North Carolina.Although he could never prove it, Joel always guessed that the true reason for his premature departure was that after raising three sons, his parents had run out of gas, hit the proverbial wall and were in dire need of a change. His beloved and saintly parents demanded to have their lives back from the grind of parenthood and sent him off to Winston-Salem, North Carolina.Before you allow that sympathetic tear to roll down you cheek, Joel has always regarded the move as the best thing that ever happened to him. After only a few hours with his feet planted firmly in the Tar Heel soil, under a Carolina Blue sky, Joel fell in love with the South. He finally found himself free to release the Southern boy that had lurked inside his heart for his entire life.Joel delighted at greeting people with a "hey" instead of "hello" and given his genetic disposition for tardiness the slower pace of the South fit him like chitlins fit a fork.After receiving a BA in Mass Communications from Winston-Salem State University, Joel pursued a career in television production. Realizing he enjoyed sitting in front of the television more than working behind the scenes, he set about finding a career that he felt passionate about. In the process, he has worked in an art gallery and in the education and legal fields.Joel is a lifelong reader and self-proclaimed TV junkie (despite the fact that his parents told him that the television was an idiot box and would ruin his imagination). In spite of countless hours in front of the tube, his love of books along with his overactive imagination made the desire to express his creative side too great to be ignored. After studying the art of writing and learning as much as possible about the publishing industry, he sat down to write his first novel and there, immersed in a sea of words, characters, plots and ideas, he finally found his true passion.Joel says he is grateful to the writers who blazed the trail and allowed him to follow in their footsteps. He has been most inspired by legendary writers such as Gordon Parks, Langston Hughes and Loraine Hansberry. He has learned from the contemporary greats like Bebe Moore Campbell, Eric Jerome Dickey, Colin Channer and the incomparable Terry McMillan. He has been driven to reach new heights by up and coming literary stars like Philip Thomas Duck, Candice Dow and Darnella Ford.Joel says that the highlight of his literary journey has been getting the opportunity to meet readers and book enthusiasts. He loves to get their feedback on his books, their feelings about his characters and their outlook on the literary community as a whole. He thoroughly enjoys the passion and commitment most book club members show for the written word. To date, he has visited many book clubs all over the country and hopes to visit many more in the near future.When he is not writing (or stuck in front of the TV), Joel enjoys traveling, horseback riding and golf. He currently lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with his wife and kids.