I’m a co-founder of KidLitGN, a graphic novel group and free pitch event, and a contributor to the Let’s Go!: A Kids Comics Studio Anthology. I’ve participated in The Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), Julie Hedlund’s 12×12, and completed Joyce Sweeney’s Picture Book Essentials Class, Mira Reisberg’s Picture Book Academy, Emma Walton Hamilton’s Just Write Middle Grade, Renee LaTulippe’s Lyrical Language Lab and James Patterson’s Master Class.

Other fun facts:

I make a mean bowl of cereal.

When I was little I was convinced I was a witch because I had a black cat and I talked to the wind (and I’m pretty sure it listened :).

I like to travel. Some of the most life-changing places I’ve been are: the ruins of Carthage, Yad Vashem, Belize–all of it, the Sibelius Monument, Mystras, The Natural History Museum in NYC, the west coast of Ireland, the “Forest of 1,000 Trails,” and oh, let me stop there or this will go one forever.

I have a love-hate relationship with social media. It can do so much good, but it has also done immense harm.

I grew up in a time and place where most of my day was spent outside, off screens–I still remember when my neighbor got an Atari. Luckily, it didn’t change much for me then. I miss a lot of that and constantly fight the siren-call of the screen. Most recently, I enjoy spending time in my garden, just watching the magic of something I put in the ground actually grow. The whistle of leaves, the heat of the sun, the grit of the dirt–the feels and sounds of the natural world just living–while my chickens interrupt it all (or add to it) with their squabbles. This is my solace from the screen.

I am finishing up a MG historical fiction novel which I will go on submission with soon. I’m developing a paranormal-ish YA novel and a MG fantasy novel inspired by a deep dive into my ancestral seafaring past. I started of writing picture book manuscripts, some of which I’ve turned into graphic novel scripts after realizing that most of my picture book ideas were too long and too old for the PB crowd but still needed pictures to tell the story. Even though I’m not an illustrator, I see the pictures in my head as I write, and I love graphic novels for the same reasons I love picture books–the marriage of word and art is a transcendent story-telling medium unlike any other. I am looking for a collaborator for my graphic novels scripts (all are humorous), so if you’re an illustrator and looking for a writer, reach out and I’ll share my ideas with you to see if they are a fit. You can find some of my GN pitches on the KidLitGN pitch event, soon to be archived.