I could say that I always wanted to write for children or that I was a bookworm as a child, but neither would be true.

As a child, I spent my free time outside climbing trees or riding my bike with my best friend. Our bikes became our horses and we created our own adventures. One day we were capturing the lion that escaped from the zoo. Another day, we were setting traps for the aliens who landed in the nearby woods.

The one thing I did know was that I wanted to work with children. A government grant at Washington University allowed me to work at a school for hearing impaired children. I loved teaching and I became a voracious reader of children’s books.

Fast forward, a BS in Speech and Hearing with certification K-12, marriage, three children, twenty years teaching and… retirement? No way! I was ready to challenge myself in a second career: writing for children.

And here I am!