Thanks for coming to my personal page.

You already get it that I love stories. Loving animals runs a close second. Seems I was born with the animal goofiness gene–many would say to my detriment. I’ve come to terms with it.

It helps that I live in a woodsy area in Northern California with my husband, where I can feast my eyes daily on all kinds of critters. I especially love dogs but I’m currently without one.

My funny, sweet terrier, Molly, died some time back. I’m still honoring her memory. I know the day will come when another dog will find its
way into my home and into my heart. Maybe even two. They’re probably greyhound rescue moms with names like Grace and Gratitude (Tudie for short). I wrote about these names in my novel This Side of Forever.

As for stories—I watch them, I read them, I discuss them, I review them, I write them, and I teach others how to write them, as often as possible, which is how my blog was born.

In addition to publishing This Side of Forever, I wrote another teen novel, Street Girl. That manuscript is languishing in that mysterious drawer where many first novels find a home. My next novel seems to be a family saga.

I’ve done a variety of things in my career, including writing features for a number of magazines and newspapers and editing a few others. I even owned my own magazine for a few years. What I’m most proud of is working for eight years with Wind, a not-for-profit organization that provides shelter and assistance to teenagers living on the streets and escaping unsafe environments. My crew of teens at Wind produced and published a top-rate newspaper, Street Breeze. I’m proud of the work they did.

I will soon be teaching again, this time a new and exciting form of writing designed to bring human shadows into the light while creating compelling narratives. See Workshops for more information.

I didn’t start writing until my fortieth birthday, so I guess you might say I was a late bloomer. I’m grateful for my good fortune over the years, including my English degree from CSU Sacramento.

Writers are my tribe–all of them. I guess that means I’m a member of a very large tribe, which makes me happy.