logo designed by Roz Fulcher
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Biography
Me at the lake hugging a book.
Like many writers, I was aware of compulsively writing by at least age 9. My dad is an amateur artist. I don’t recall discussing writing with him, but in eighth grade he told me, “You can't make a living in the arts. Be a teacher.” By high school I had two dreams, to become a professional writer and to travel. My dad had already taken me to every state in the U.S. except for five in the far Northwestern corner. We had also visited the Southeastern part of Canada. So, by travel, I meant abroad. I studied French in high school and college. The year after I received my teaching degree, I landed contracts for four children’s books and had sold numerous magazine articles in the adult market. I decided that I could make a living as a writer, so I went back to college and earned a degree in journalism. In all, these are the colleges I attended: Kent State University, Ohio; Angelo State University, Texas; Parkland College, Illinois; University of Hawaii; Southwest Texas State University (now Texas State U.); and the University of Texas at San Antonio. 
My first publicity photo when my first series was released.
I also traveled to the Philippines, Korea, Saipan, Johnston Atoll, and northern Mexico. Again, place has been a very strong presence in my life, much like a character in a story. We loved everywhere we lived because we always went with a spirit of adventure. Having degrees in education, English and journalism worked out well when we moved. I either taught school, grades 6-12, or else worked as a reporter, editor, copy editor, or in media and public relations and marketing. My favorite job, besides the one I do now writing children’s books, was as a reporter for the Pacific Daily News, a Gannett paper. I covered politics in the West Pacific. My territory was the size of the United States, only most of it was underwater. I worked at a number of newspapers, including as a copy editor for the San Antonio Express-News, a Hearst daily. Our entire family became SCUBA certified and we dove above the Great Barrier Reef. If I worked off-island more than one week, Gannett flew my family to Saipan to spend the weekend with me at the Pacific Island Club. How cool is that? I would go snorkeling after work, too. I covered a lot of political events that are now written about in history books. When I come to school visits I like to talk to students about some of the events I covered. It’s important to me to let students know that they can make a living in the arts. There are a lot of writing jobs if they know how to train from them and what to study in college. |
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