I grew up in storyland. During my boyhood, I listened to stories told from South Louisiana’s front porches, screened-in back patios, kitchen counters, barber shops, ball parks, duck blinds, fishing boats and all forms of camps – marsh houseboats, cypress lake A-frames, deer lease trailers and Grand Isle frame homes on pilings.

When I wasn’t absorbing stories with my ears, I read them. My maternal grandmother, Mary Welsh LeBlanc, set the hook early when she read to me The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. While my tastes have varied, I have been reading ever since. Some memorable tales include biographies for young readers and Hardy Boys mysteries checked out from the Lafourche Parish Public Library, Mad magazines purchased from racks at places like the K&B and TG&Y, a weekly inhaling of Sports Illustrated, a tattered copy of Where the Red Fern Grows, college days of King Lear and A Sun Also Rises, discovering fellow Louisianians Ernest Gaines, James Lee Burke, John Kennedy Toole, Walker Percy and Tim Gautreaux and the latter-day pleasures of A Colony of Unrequited Dreams, Blood Meridian and Stoner.

During my senior year in high school, I realized I could tell decent stories, too, and I could possibly write them for others to read. Ever since, the writing has been a journey. I studied the craft of journalism at the University of Missouri, learned the law at LSU, and have experimented with the written word ever since.

I once thought that by this writing (July 14, 2025) I would be a full-time writer. I am not. But I am appreciative of what I have, my wife Susie and our two grown daughters, Grace and Celeste. I am also grateful for my community, my extended family and friends, and my law practice (see www.woodyfalgoust.com).

Speaking of my law firm, after three decades, I also love my day job. Every day my teammates and I have the opportunity to impact our clients’ lives. Sometimes, it’s through storytelling – to the court, in a contract, in a negotiation, or, most recently, on social media. Whatever it is, we get to listen to our clients’ every day and contribute to their stories.

I am thankful that on a daily basis, I can do what I learned to love as a child – listen to, read, tell and write stories.