about me

As a mom of six kids ages 9 - 21 (and most of their friends), and a wife of 16 years, I will never run out of material.

Since childhood, I have written song lyrics, short stories and Erma Bombeck type humor. Life isn't always a pretty thing and I've found that meeting it head-on with humor is a way to stay sane and even be enjoyable to be around.

After being published for the first time in the mid-90's in two compilation books about losing a loved one to homicide, I put my pen down for a few years. Life, family, work, etc. seemed to leave little time to lose myself in writing and I survived by locking myself in the bathroom to read a chapter here and there. (Other moms will understand this since as mom to the world, your ONLY private and quiet spot is the bathroom!)

In 2003 I picked my proverbial pen back up and went to work as a music writer/site editor for one of the top 15 web sites on the internet. I've been there ever since and it's a great fit because music is as important to me as the written word. Getting paid to write and listen to music, from my own home office on my own schedule, is like a dream come true.

After years of making up bedtime stories on the fly, I decided earlier this year to actually write one down. My youngest child is eight, and very into chapter books, so I decided that was the way to go.

'Alex and The Very Worst, Very Best Summer Ever' is based on the not-so-grand adventures of my middle son when he broke his leg as a child. With the exception of said son, who complained bitterly that his recovery time wasn't nearly as fun or exciting, my whole family loved it. Of course, I'm sure that there is some law out there that requires that kind of blind adoration, so I decided to seek out more "professional" opinions.

Enter my daughter's third grade teacher. When this lovely lady heard that I had written a chapter book, she invited me to her classroom to share the book with her students. With only a little fear and trepidation (this was a room full of 30+ 8-year-olds after all), I went to the school to read.

The kids were amazing. They sat still and stayed quiet for about an hour while I read and they laughed in all of the right places. Afterwards I was asked if I had more copies by just about every child in that classroom and several of them shared their own fears about doctors, their joys over sports and their stories about family members or friends breaking bones. The teacher told me that any book that could keep her crew quiet for an hour was a best seller in the making and she has since asked if I will come back to read the story to the other 3rd grade classes.

I hope that you enjoy the adventures of Alex as much as the kids did and I thank you for taking a few moments out of your day to share them with me.

favourite books

When I find an author that I really like, I tend to read most of their books, so I will list authors instead of individual books.

- Fiction -

Nora Roberts (as herself or J.D. Robb)
Christine Feehan
Iris Johansen
Linda Howard
Lisa Jackson
Lisa Gardner
Sandra Brown
Dean Koontz
Patricia Cornwell
James Patterson
John Grisham
Elizabeth Lowell
Julie Garwood
Robert Jordan
Terry Goodkind
Anne McCaffrey

- Children's Authors -

Barbara Park
Carolyn Keene
Beverly Cleary
Judy Blume
Peggy Parish

my websites

http://christianmusic.about.com