Thanks for agreeing to this chat, Karen. Before we start talking about your work, tell us a little about yourself, please.

I am Karen Joyce Witzel, although my brother thinks my middle name is Sue. I am 26 but I intend to remain around 21 in my thoughts and heart throughout my life. No use being a miserable old fart in this glorious world.

Nice attitude. I sometimes say to people that I'll grow up as soon as someone shows me proof that there is life after puberty... where do you live?

I live in southwest Michigan, about a 20 minutes drive away from the lake.

Can you describe your place for us?

I've got a wonderful 1927 4 bedroom house. One bedroom is a lined with bookshelves and is a library because I am a complete book freak, and another bedroom is my computer and art room and I barely leave that room. And I have the ugliest wallpaper in the world on the ceiling of my kitchen.

Isn't that easy enough to fix?

It is the original wallpaper that was put up when the house was built in 1927, and is so fused to the ceiling that removal is impossible. So I leave it as a conversation starter.

So you work from home, and a rather beautiful home at that...

I am actually a third shift factory rat. Really. I worked white collar for a short time after graduating college, and discovered that I hated being forced to wear dresses every day, office politics, and long business lunches that I would rather cut short so I could go home earlier and do something else. So I quit and work at the second largest office furniture manufacturer.

Does this mean that your skills are not for hire?

My skills are for hire if anyone is interested. I am never opposed to freelance work, if I know I have the time and the skill for the project. Creating a website for anyone would be a joy because I can combine art and coding, and I can write HTML in my sleep!

Hah, so can I! You know, writing HTML is very fast becoming a forgotten skill... You say you are a newcomer to Bryce. How long have you been using the software?

I just recently reached my one year anniversary with Bryce. But I did not get serious about it until January 99 or so.

Gosh, really? Did you use any other Graphics Programs before you discovered Bryce?

Until a friend turned me on to Bryce, I had barely used a computer before! I used one in college to write papers and play MUDS on and that was it. I created my first piece of computer art a year ago when I installed Bryce for the first time.

You studied Fine Art at College. Was Computer Graphics an option?

The university that I was at offered some classes in computer graphics, but I never took one. I was interested only in fine arts....life drawing, watercolor, etc. From what I saw, the cg courses were not something that I would have been interested in anyway. It seemed like nothing more than basic typographic layouts...how to print up fliers for the theater department and stuff like that. Had I seen something like Bryce back then, I might have jumped in!

OK, let us have a look at your Web Site. It is huge, spread out over three different Servers, but visitors to your pages may never notice. It is one of the easiest Sites to navigate that I know, everything tied together with the Carrot Map. Is there a story behind the Carrot Map?

Actually, I broke the site into three separate sites for easier browsing, and used the Carrot Map as a way to stay connected. That is why the Carrot Map is a little different on each site...each site has its own links and rings that are relevant to that particular topic. I like being able to move around easily within web sites and have seen so few pages that really are that way.

Yes... but why Carrots, of all things?

It was a spur of the moment decision that came about after I realized that I would have to break my sites apart. I had been given the knickname of Carrothead or Carrot by a child, and I figured that carrots would bring an element of humor and continuity to it all.

You call your Site Fathom Designs, a lovely evocative name. Is this a business you own?

Well, I suppose so. Granted, it is just me and my computer, but I'm for hire, depending on the project.

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