Michael Shapiro is a journalist specializing in interviews and profiles with expertise in environmental issues, travel and the performing arts. He's also worked as an editor at newspapers, magazines and online publications. He's author of "The Creative Spark," (Solas House, 2019) a collection of interviews with artists and musicians that won the Independent Publishers Award. He's also author of the award-winning "A Sense of Place: Great Travel Writers Talk About Their Craft, Lives, and Inspiration" published by Travelers' Tales.His stories have appeared in National Geographic Traveler (cover story in 2006 on Wales), the Washington Post, NY Times, LA Times, SF Chronicle, AFAR, and American Way magazine. He's done lengthy interviews for The Sun , profiling oceanographer Sylvia Earle, oral historian Studs Terkel and author Barry Lopez.In early days of the Net, he wrote "NetTravel: How Travelers Use the Internet" (1997) and "Internet Travel Planner" (2000), among the first primers on how to use the Net for travel planning. Shapiro wrote the text for "Guatemala: A Journey Through the Land of the Maya" featuring photos by Lonely Planet's Kraig Lieb.Specialties: As a longtime editor, I've worked with clients on travel stories, autobiographies and book projects. My clients have been published in the LA Times and SF Chronicle travel sections, in Travelers' Tales anthologies and other outlets. I have a strong background writing feature and service stories in travel, lifestyle and entertainment. My gift is interviewing people in a way that encourages them to freely share their stories. I make life-story documentaries about people that remain family heirlooms for generations to come.