I’ve been writing since I was three, because even when I was tiny I understood that our ability to make letters into words, words into sentences, sentences into paragraphs, and paragraphs into stories that stir, change, and move the hearts, minds, and souls of individuals we’ve never seen or met before — well that is one of the greatest abilities we have as human beings.

When I was sixteen, I pulled a random book from a shelf in my high school library: The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy. Within the first two pages an overwhelming feeling came over me: I want to learn how do this.  To create story in a way that makes someone see, feel, and understand something so beautiful, painful, and complex all at once. So I got to work doing just that.

I majored in Creative Writing at St. Andrews University where I received the Bunn-MacLellan Chapbook Award and studied the poems of Ezra Pound with his daughter — the imminent scholar of his work. I received my master’s degree from the Creative Writing MA Program at Florida State University, where I learned to read with great discernment, write with bravery, and edit with objectivity.

Besides authoring eight novels, I now also have over two decades of experience in the reading and writing industry. My first job out of graduate school was as an Editorial Assistant under Jean Feiwel at Scholastic, Inc. For ten years I managed the independent children's bookstore Little Shop of Stories. I served two terms as the Program Director for the AJC Decatur Book Festival (the largest independent book festival in the country), have been Editor-in-Chief at Rootstock, Writing Coach at Ripples Media, and have taught dozens of writing classes to both children and grownups.

I know good stories and I want to help you create them.

When I am not reading or writing, I like to do a lot of crafty things (especially with watercolors, collage, and photography) and cook or bake, preferably for friends. I also really like Fluevog shoes, Blythe dolls, watching movies, playing board games, and making up Mad Libs with my sisters.