1. When and why did you start writing? My mother was a master storyteller. I remember nights when she was too tired to read from books. So, she would retell folktales to us six kids with such rhythm and cadence, the characters came to life. When the tradition carried on to my children and now my grandchildren, I realized it was time to write them down so they could be enjoyed by future generations.
2. Where do your ideas come from? Some really good ideas come when I'm riding in the car, watching the news or hiking. In other words when I'm not thinking hard about trying to find ideas. But recently I've started watching a show called "Finding Your Roots." They bring celebs on and research their ancestry. I love history, so I find this really interesting. And I've found many story ideas for picture book biographies this way.
3. What was your favorite book growing up? We didn’t have many books growing up. We used the bookmobile mostly. We did have a copy of Grimm’s fairytales that I really loved. Charlotte’s Web, Stuart Little and Peter Rabbit were some of my favorites.
4. Do you have a favorite author? Patricia Polacco, William Steig, Sue Fliess, Tami Sauer, Henry Cole and so many more.
5. What was your childhood like? I grew up in a small three bedroom house in Falls Church, VA. I am the youngest of six children; four girls and two boys. We had a single mom. So, needless to say she was always busy, but she made time at night to read us bedtime stories. I was teased when I was in elementary school. I guess they call it bullying now. I suppose that's why most of my main characters are strong and determined. Being the youngest of six had many ups and downs. My youngest brother was a prankster so I was usually his “Crash Test Dummy”. This will probably be the subject of a book in the near future.
6. What projects are you working on now? I am drawn to history and some of the amazing and brave things people did or had to endure in the past. I'm currently working on a picture book biography about Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas. He was a strong defender of civil liberties and a voice for the voiceless. I'm also writing humorous stories for children. I've created a book dummy about one of my mother's folktales, "The Broonie and the Cook." A Scottish folktale about a small elf like creature that is content to clean in exchange for his nightly bowl of milk. That is, until a new cook moves in who doesn't believe in broonie's and refuses to feed him.
2. Where do your ideas come from? Some really good ideas come when I'm riding in the car, watching the news or hiking. In other words when I'm not thinking hard about trying to find ideas. But recently I've started watching a show called "Finding Your Roots." They bring celebs on and research their ancestry. I love history, so I find this really interesting. And I've found many story ideas for picture book biographies this way.
3. What was your favorite book growing up? We didn’t have many books growing up. We used the bookmobile mostly. We did have a copy of Grimm’s fairytales that I really loved. Charlotte’s Web, Stuart Little and Peter Rabbit were some of my favorites.
4. Do you have a favorite author? Patricia Polacco, William Steig, Sue Fliess, Tami Sauer, Henry Cole and so many more.
5. What was your childhood like? I grew up in a small three bedroom house in Falls Church, VA. I am the youngest of six children; four girls and two boys. We had a single mom. So, needless to say she was always busy, but she made time at night to read us bedtime stories. I was teased when I was in elementary school. I guess they call it bullying now. I suppose that's why most of my main characters are strong and determined. Being the youngest of six had many ups and downs. My youngest brother was a prankster so I was usually his “Crash Test Dummy”. This will probably be the subject of a book in the near future.
6. What projects are you working on now? I am drawn to history and some of the amazing and brave things people did or had to endure in the past. I'm currently working on a picture book biography about Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas. He was a strong defender of civil liberties and a voice for the voiceless. I'm also writing humorous stories for children. I've created a book dummy about one of my mother's folktales, "The Broonie and the Cook." A Scottish folktale about a small elf like creature that is content to clean in exchange for his nightly bowl of milk. That is, until a new cook moves in who doesn't believe in broonie's and refuses to feed him.