Writer/Editor
I first started writing for publication in 1984 when I was a talk-show host at WAVI in Dayton, Ohio, where I also did a weekly technology show called "Computer Talk." (Compute magazine noted it was the first its kind on the air in the country). From there it was a short jump to enter the magazine field with articles in several computer publications. The computer magazine boom faded, but with several published articles on my resume I targeted magazines with a greater variety of article topics. In 1988 I added science fiction to my output, publishing two novels and numerous short stories.
Enjoying writing, in 1997 I left broadcasting to enter publishing full-time at Woodshop News magazine. (I stayed on the air part-time, though, at WRCH-FM in Hartford, just for fun.) I was named Editor at Woodshop News in 2000, and in 2004 become founding Editor-in-Chief of Woodcraft magazine. In 2006 I decided to become a full-time freelance writer/editor.
Here's a sampling. Most of the images are links -- click to go to the publisher or Amazon page for that publication.
Books & DVDs
My personal interests range from cooking to hiking to science and a lot in between, but I've found a good niche in the areas of woodworking and home improvement. My first two woodworking books came out in 2010 -- "Civil War Woodworking" from Linden Publishing, and "Easy-to-Build Birdhouses" from F&W Publications (now Penguin/Random House). The birdhouse book has become a best-seller with sales topping 46,000 copies ... so far.
For a look at some of the many projects that have come out of my shop and from the pages of my books, take a peek at my Woodworking Gallery page.
Woodworking, DIY & Home Improvement Magazines
As with my books, my writing for periodicals is directed toward woodworking publications, and articles under my byline have appeared in just about all the titles in the field. For several years I also served as editor for a series of SIPs (Special Interest Publications) for Wood Magazine.
In addition to print articles, my weekly "Over the Workbench" blog has appeared on the Woodshop News website for the past 16 years with more than 1,100 blogs to date. Of course, I maintain an active Facebook page that I update frequently -- it'd be great if you dropped by, gave me a like and follow the page!
General Interest Publications
From my first writing in 1984, the subject matter of my published nonfiction articles jumped all over the place. That shifted when I started working for Woodshop News in 1997, and today I'm known primarily as a woodworking writer.
Birds, astronomy, science, straight interview pieces and Civil War history are just some of the topics I've covered in published work.
Science Fiction
From 1988 to 1996 I concentrated almost exclusively on producing science fiction, which should come as no surprise to anyone who knows me. Writing as "A.J. Austin" (the name I'd used throughout my broadcast career), I co-authored two novels with science-fiction legend Ben Bova. My short stories, meanwhile, appeared in most of the top U.S. sci-fi magazines at the time, as well as a couple European publications.
Once I started working as a full-time writer at Woodshop News I returned to writing mostly nonfiction in the areas of woodworking, using the A.J. Hamler byline. Today, I keep the two branches of my writing very separate; I let that A.J. Austin guy take credit for the fiction, while I handle the nonfiction.
