Thanks for stopping by. This is the spot where I reveal all my secrets and tell lies about how successful I am, right? After all, I do write fiction. For the record, I'll stick to the facts and try not to bore you.
I believe in Jesus, doing the right thing, the power of the written word, and a good cup of coffee. Being married to my best friend is one of life's sweetest blessings. But since so many others have shaped my life along the way, perhaps I should start at the beginning.
Born in Oklahoma, I moved to the Texas Panhandle at the age of two. Small town school. The oldest of three girls. Loving parents who raised me in a Christian home. Today, those small-town, fundamental things resonate within me—the twang in people’s voices, the art of being neighborly and just being a decent human being.
Growing up, I preferred the company of books over television and playing outdoors. I imagined myself in many different careers, but given my down-to-earth raising, I settled on nursing. I didn’t faint at the sight of blood and did well in science, so it seemed a natural choice.
I married Max, my college sweetheart, when I graduated from the University of Oklahoma, and within four years, we had three little boys. Took a breather and settled into life in the suburbs of Dallas. Car pools and field trips. Reading whenever and wherever I could. Got baby fever when the boys started school and added son #4 to the mix. Crazy, fun years when the first thoughts of writing books flitted in and out of my head as rambunctious kids ran through the house, banging doors, and keeping us on the go.
We gave up life in the Metroplex for a more pastoral setting on a family farm in Oklahoma. I returned to nursing and watched our boys sprout their own fledgling wings and flee the nest. With only one son left at home, my passion to write, to pen the stories of people who had touched my life and make up new ones, grew until I knew I had to feed the fire growing within.
In 2001, without breathing a word to anyone, I wrote the first ninety pages of a novel. Realizing how lost I was in the literary world, I confessed my dream to Max (who thought it was a grand idea!), invested in a book on writing, attended my first writing group, and went to my first conference. Even now, these things are the best advice I would give any one starting out in writing: follow your heart, learn the craft, join other writers, and attend conferences. And then . . . just WRITE.
Now, I'm doing what I love, but unlike the dreamy image of being a writer, I've found that it's both the hardest and yet, most rewarding thing I've ever done. My prayer is that someone along the way will read my stories and be touched by a word here and there.
Whether you're a reader, a writer, or just beloved, I want to thank you for sharing my journey. Please drop me a line and tell me about you and your dreams. I would love to hear from you.