I've always been a reader, and grew up with a strong reverence for books. Reading and writing have gotten me through some rough times in my life, and are still my most cherished activities.

I believe in the worth of all human beings, and that each of us has stories to tell, stories that are uniquely our own. I believe in truth and beauty, and in telling stories that share truth in addition to entertaining.

I like to explore a lot of themes in my work, but you'll see a few pop up more often than others. Exploring how people survive the unendurable, and what pushes ordinary people to do extraordinary things, are topics that seem to endlessly fascinate me. In my mystery writing (none of which is posted here yet), I like exploring how and why basically good people are driven to do evil things, and vice versa.

Random Tidbits:

• Favorite food: sushi


• Favorite color: purple


• Favorite authors: Laurell K. Hamilton, Sue Grafton, Sara Paretsky, Patricia Cornwell, Marcia Muller, Faye Kellerman, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Mercedes Lackey


• Writing music: The '80s and Country music audio channels on my satellite dish

In addition to working and writing, I also work as a volunteer rape crisis advocate. The plight of the thousands of women and men who are raped and abused each year is a cause I feel a great deal of passion about.