I have a feature article in Flint Comix this month!

This month's issue of Flint Comix features an article I wrote about the history of the Lone Ranger and the character's connection to Michigan. The article is based on a presentation I did for the Whaley Historic House during their History Happy Hour (which in turn was based on a documentary film I worked on). 

As a long time fan of Flint Comix (which is a free publication that brings the joy of comics to everyone in the Flint, Michigan area) and an even longer time fan of Flint Comix owner, Randy Zimmerman, I was very honored to have an article published in this paper. I'm looking forward to writing future articles for this periodical because of the inspiring public service they provide.

My interview with Crimson Rider author, Zach Davis, for IndieVolt.com

Hello Folks,

Check out this interview I did with one of my favorite creators, Zach Davis, for IndieVolt Magazine. We discuss his new comic series, Crimson Rider, and we judge who has the most epic beard in the indie comic scene.


Zach Davis Interview

New Term, Same Sense of Excitement and Gratitude

Tomorrow is the start of my fourth term teaching at the University of the People. I'm teaching two sections of the history course that covers ancient Greece and ancient Rome which are my favorite subjects to teach. I'm so excited to be an instructor at UoPeople because it allows me to teach students from all over the world and from different walks of life. I'm not only making historians, I'm making them around the world.

The Professor is IN

My "I'm grading papers" face

This has been another amazing term as a professor at the University of the People. It has been a bit more time consuming (I'm teaching two sections of Ancient Greek and Roman History this term) but I have really grown as an instructor.

I started the term with some great one-on-one mentoring from the faculty director that really helped me to hone my skills as a faculty member.

Even though I had twice the amount of students, I made a promise to myself that I would still give each one the same amount of attention that I have always given my students. The results were a resounding success. The course evaluations I have received from students have been some of the best I have ever received. This term ends in the next couple days but I can't wait to teach again and share my love of history. #IMakeHistorians

History Happy Hour with Prof Tric!

Hello Folks,

On September 7th, I was honored to be part of the Whaley Historic House's series of local history lectures known as History Happy Hour.

This is a great platform for historians to present little known local history in a fun and relaxed atmosphere. While the Whaley House has been under repairs the History Happy Hours have been hosted by Tenacity Brewing. Tenacity is a great place with a super-friendly staff that makes everyone feel like a VIP. They're very moderately priced and their menu has something for every taste.

http://www.tenacitybrewing.com/

For my presentation I choose the Lone Ranger's humble origins from right here in Michigan. The Lone Ranger has long been an icon of the American West. However, many do not realized that he was created for WXYZ radio by Michiganders and that the first person to voice this lawman was from Oxford, MI. 

The Whaley Historic House in Flint is an amazing place. Please consider donating to them and attending their fundraisers.
http://www.whaleyhouse.com/

History Happy Hour with Professor Tric

On September 7th, I had the pleasure of presenting a lecture at Tenacity Brewing in Flint, Michigan as part of the History Happy Hour.

 History Happy Hour is an informative lecture series created by the Whaley Historic House. The Whaley is an amazing house turned museum that does a lot to keep the history of Flint alive. History Happy Hour allows historians at all levels to enjoy local Michigan historical topics while drinking their favorite beverages.

My presentation focused on the origin of an American West Icon, the Lone Ranger, and his little known Michigan origins. 

I'm looking forward to presenting more lectures at historical events in the Michigan area and working more with the Whaley Historic House.

My First Published History Article

Hello Everyone,

I'm very proud to announce that an article I've written has been published. The article deals with the Second Punic War and how Hannibal Barca used psychological warfare against the Romans.

According to many of the Ancient Historians, Hannibal's forces were half the size of the Roman Army yet Hannibal won most of the battles he participated in and his men suffered less casualties than the Romans. We all know the story of how Hannibal brought elephants over the Alps but his intimidation tactics don't stop there. Throughout his time in Italy, Hannibal wore down the morale of the Romans and exploited the confidence of their generals. My article, Hannibal Barca: The General that Defeated More Than Rome's Army, looks at all the psychological tactics used by Hannibal in the Second Punic War.

I couldn't have asked for a better home than at The Groovy Historian. They're a young and vibrant professional website that brings well researched and writtern history articles to historians of all ages and qualifications. They really live by #IMakeHistorians over there. 

Please check out my article as well as all the groovy history pieces available at:

www.groovy-historian.com 

Classes, Comics, and Television Shows Oh, My!

Hello Folks,
Sorry I haven't posted in awhile but some amazing opportunities have came about for me.

#Prof Tric
I have been teaching the Ancient Roman and Greek History course at the University of the People every term since I was hired at the beginning of the year. My experience working at the University and the interactions I've had with students has been amazing! I'm really looking forward to continuing my teaching at UoPeople far into the future.

University of the People

#IMakeHistorians
Secondly, I have been contracted at Study.com to write history lessons for them. I am so grateful for the opportunity to develop history courses for others. This is part of the realization of my teaching philosophy, "I make historians," because I will be creating the content that teaches and inspires future historians.

Study.com

History Television Programming
Throughout the summer I have been filming and writing a documentary television series for Amazing Productions that features some of the greatest icons from the American West. This series has been a lot of fun. It's given me the ability to again work with Warren Jackson, the outstanding director of UFO: The Otis Files. We finished the last day of filming for this series so during our wrap party/dinner today we discussed working on a children's television show that would teach kids about (what else) history. We will begin filming that later this month through Warren's production company, Muted Madness Films.

Muted Madness Films

UFO: The Otis Files

History Comics
One of the greatest things to happen recently was that I combined my love for comics with my love of history. As many of you may know, I'm a firm believer in using comics to teach a multitude of subjects especially History so I have written some scripts for American Legend Comics that feature historical figures which should be available for purchase early next year (if not earlier). Also, I was approached about writing a graphic novel set in World War II. I'll keep you informed about this project as it unfolds.


#HistoryHappyHour
I'm proud to announce that I will be presenting a lecture on the History of the Lone Ranger for the Whaley Historic House in Flint, Michigan as part of their History Happy Hour. I have been hoping to become a part of this History lecture series for years so I'm proud to be presenting next month on September 7th at Tenacity Brewing.

Whaley Historic House

Tenacity Brewing

More Writing
I have been writing some articles for a website called Indie Volt that features indie comic book creators. This website has been beneficial in spotlighting some great comics from independent creators that would otherwise go unnoticed by the big media outlets. The staff there have been amazing to work with and welcomed me into the fold with open arms.

IndieVolt.com

Another website that I have been asked to write an article for is Groovy Historian. This has long been my favorite history website for years and it is truly an honor to finally be working with them. My article about the Second Punic War should be on the website by the end of the month.

Groovy Historian

"I Don't Teach History, I Make Historians"

I get a lot of requests regarding my teaching philosophy. As a graduate student, we were told to develop a philosophy regarding ourselves and how we planned to teach. Naturally, as a good grad student I thought the answer could be found by researching so I read A LOT of teaching philosophies from other masters and PhD recipients. All of them sounded the same. It wasn't until I actually began to teach in higher education that I realized what my teaching philosophy was...

"I don't teach history. I make historians."

When people think of history teachers they think of someone trying to get them to memorize dates, battles, and names. I like to think I make historians. Now, I don't expect everyone that takes my class to change their major to history but I inspire my students to think about history. I encourage them to consider what causes historical events to happen, what legacy it left, and how those events are similar to things taking place in our modern world. In my course, you will learn to look at history not as something that happened an eternity ago but how it affects us to this day.

Reputation is all we have (or "Personal Branding" as it's called now)

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about my personal brand. For the longest time my brand was Source Point Press (a publishing company I co-founded with Joshua Werner). I channeled all my energy for the last four years into promoting SPP. Now that I’m a paid writer and college professor, I feel the need to promote my personal brand (to get more writing and professor jobs).

At first, I wasn’t sure how to do this. I’ve never been that good at social media and every article seems to say that tweeting, posting and followers are the only way to get your name out there. Then, I thought about my career as an automotive professional. I was never hired because I had thousands of followers or because I tweeted every five minutes. Not only have I never had to worry about finding employment but usually I have been recruited because of my reputation in the industry (what nowadays they call “personal branding”). How did I come to be recognized as a “great parts guy” in the automotive industry? Well, I spent years making connections through various positions in the field and I attended industry conferences. Also, at every position I made sure I was their “go to” guy that could track down the hard to find parts and the parts were right the first time.

The connections I made through meeting and working with people were real. I wasn’t just a profile on a list of their thousands of followers. How do I transfer my personal brand into not one, but two other industries? Basically, I’ll just repeat the process. I love discussing and learning more about history so attending museums, conferences and lectures is right up my alley. I can use these opportunities to meet other historians and professors. Slowly through attending these events and giving presentations of my own I can build up my reputation as a well-researched and versatile historian. I have already begun building up my reputation as a dedicated instructor at the university where I’ve been teaching so hopefully that will lead to being offered more classes and knowing more people in the industry.

Naturally, I’m still going to share interesting articles on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, and my blog here but I can see that the real networking and reputation building is built in person.