Just made contact with a 3rd or 4th cousin on my birth mother's side, thanks to 23andme. His 7th great-grandfather was Ellis Hughes, who came from Wales. He is also related to the Rays, as I am.
My great-grandmother, Lucy Anetta Ray, is related to William S. Ray. My great-grandmother was Tuckahoe Cherokee, according to Norma Ellis, the family historian/genealogist.
Need to pull out the info my brother, Jan, sent to me years ago as a birthday gift (it was the most important birthday gift anyone's ever given me--I'm so appreciative of him doing that!). Can't remember off the top of my head and haven't memorized nine generations of info on that side of the family, lol. But I'll check into it over the next few days when I get more time.
Edward (the cousin I connected with) has done some technical writing, but said it didn't come easy to him. He doesn't know anyone else in the family who writes. However, my birth mother, Fay, used to write song lyrics and performed/sang when she was younger.
Malcolm Gladwell (bestselling author of The Tipping Point, Outliers, and other books) is a DNA relative along my birth father's (paternal) line. So there's at least one writer/author from that side of the family tree.
I believe a propensity for writing, painting, music, and other types of creativity/artistry may have a genetic component. I'd like to see if that holds true for either side of my family tree. My son works as a technical writer and has a BFA in Dramatic Writing. My daughter is also a natural scribe, though hardly anyone knows that, save for me, Paul, & Jon.
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