I’m a writer and WordPress consultant in Missoula, Montana. I write technology pieces, journalism and non-fiction set in Montana and work as a WordPress developer for clients in Montana and around the world. I am active in the arts and humanities in Montana, have received grants and fellowships for my work and have served on a state grant advisory board.

You can read my recent articles and columns, like my Random Tech articles, State of the Arts Tech Talk columns for the Montana Arts Council and a series of Montana pieces I call Rocks and Bones. I write Mac Q & A columns for Mac and OS X users in Montana and my series of articles about WordPress is called Words on WordPress.

You can read more about my WordPress work here, where there are links to sites I have developed and designed. I’m skilled in WordPress XHTML and CSS design, the Genesis Theme Framework, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), PHP functions, site security and linux/LAMP shared and dedicated server/VPS performance. My online technology profiles include WordPress.org, StackOverflow, WordPress Development, LinkedIn and Upwork.

My 2008-2011 archived Missoulian columns include my 225-odd Sunday Tech columns and InBusinessMonthly articles. I write occasional articles on Native American issues for The Buffalo Post.

I’m active in the arts and humanities in Montana, and served as vice-chair of the Montana Cultural and Aesthetic Trust from 2006 to 2013. I’ve received grants from the Montana Arts Council, including an individual fellowship in Photography; from Humanities Montana for writing and research; from Ucross Foundation for a writer’s residency; and a Charles Redd Center for Western Studies Independent Scholar grant.

I engineered and produced a set of CDs titled Eat Stone and Go On: The Recorded Poetry of Richard Hugo, funded by Humanities Montana and individuals and distributed free to public libraries and schools around the state of Montana.

I’m a faculty affiliate with the University of Montana-Missoula Department of English and have taught composition and introductory literature classes, as well as an Information Technology class in the Department of Computer Science. I’ve also taught photography in high schools and creative writing in the Wilderness and Civilization Program in the Department of Forestry at University of Montana-Missoula.

Other experience includes work as a carpenter and cabinet maker, and travel and work in India, mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Email or snail mail: Mark Ratledge, PO Box 8701, Missoula, MT 59807