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I'm available for online chats, book discussions, general writing topics and the like. I'm available locally for in person
speaking engagements, book signings, readings and anything to do with the world of writing and publishing. Not sure if I'm
local? Do ask. If you are interested, please email me.
Have a request, comment, or question you would like to ask me? Don't be shy, I check my email most every work day
and answer all correspondence.
or by snail mail at P.O. Box 122 * Loretto, PA 15940
"No goal is impossible. Some things simply take
more effort, more time, and more improvising than others." - T.C. McMullen
You've dared to enter the crypt
and discover the little secrets of one writer's life? It's really not all that
exciting. I sleep, eat, clean, work, and start all over again, very much like
everyone else. But if you must, go ahead and grab a torch. Here you will get to know a little about me.
 
One late evening while walking
along the deserted railroad tracks, a chill in the air helped to increase my two town friends' anxiety. I trudged along,
dragging them on an all night sleep out alone in a cabin nestled deep in the woods and far from any houses. They both grew quieter, their voices dropping to a whisper as their nervous gazes drifted from one side
of the tracks, where the ground gave way to a deep ravine, to the other where the earth rose above our heads. As they
worried about what lurked ahead, waiting for us in the quickly fading daylight, I chuckled. "Just think of what's following..."
Yes, I earned many slaps, pillow
bashings, and screams as a teen. I've had to reign in my spooky urges since then though. When children are
scared, it's mom who tends to suffer.
Growing up, I was lucky enough to be surrounded by family, great grandparents,
grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins. My grandparents owned a farm and
it was my back yard. Although I had so many extended family members, I spent
hours, under my grandparents' supervision while my parents worked, off on my own by the stone spring house, listening to the
water trickling by, or up at the barn where the smell of hay and horse was ever present.
There was a cabin in the woods and railroad tracks to walk along on the hot summer days, listening to the crickets
and cicadas. Is it any wonder that I write about rural areas?
My mom taught me art, shapes,
shading. My dad, the best auto body man around turned truck driver, taught me
attention to details, patience. My grandfather worked with wood, creating grandfather
clocks, porch swings, and gliders. My grandmother could make anything with fabric
and thread (although I really did not inherit this skill) from teddy bears and dolls to clothes. There was never a shortage of hobbies or talents or something to keep us busy.
I picked up oil painting from
my mom. But I am the first to have put thoughts into stories of hope, of fear,
of perseverance. I started writing in piles and piles of school notebooks when
I was supposed to be studying in grade school. Even now I have stacks of ideas
just waiting to be born. My heart goes into my work, my characters, and my stories.
I received my diploma from the Long Ridge Writer's Group in 1995 and by 1997 had my first novel ready for public eye.
I worked with the Lee Shore Agency of Pittsburg and their editors for my first book (but ultimately chose to go
it alone). I bought my first computer August 2001 and instantly began researching, surprisingly finding myself surrounded by
other authors who had much more experience than I did. Due to talking with them and the options they showed me, I chose to
go the "non-traditional" route with my books. In doing so I was able to keep my first novel as I wrote it - mild with shock
value, full of character.
I became Senior Editor and Head
Artistic Development Editor of Global Authors Publications early 2003 and worked on and helped put to print 11 novels
that year, many of them award winners. I began Mystique Design mid year. By 2004, I had branched off with my own Open
Reign Publishing, a publisher for the darker genres. My Manipulated Evil Trilogy was finished fall of 2005.
Why my stories are always dark,
I can't really tell you. Shouldn't a mother of three darling girls, a sweet and
friendly woman (so I'm told) write feel-good romance or children's stories? Guess
not, because no matter what a story starts out being, the cobwebs form in the corners, the daylight fades, strange noises
slither to and fro, and the suspense begins.
I've finished the Manipulated Evil trilogy. Phew.
And honestly I am not ready to start another project with characters so demanding, but it's happening anyway. Visit the "What's
New" page for more on the subject. I'll let you know how my newest novels are coming along. Visit my blog HERE to read the latest happenings.
I'm working as an instructor at the Long Story Short School of Writing as well as
keeping my household together. And have just joined the ranks of Star Publishing LLC as Director. I've worked with Star in
the background for years, but am now stepping into the foreground.
I spend as much time with my three girls as I can. It's
true - they do grow much too quickly. I'm watching them grow and wonder where the time goes...
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