I was born in Springfield, Missouri, the fifth child in what would eventually become a family of eight children. I have four brothers and three sisters and like all large families, I suppose, we looked for space of our own. I found that peace, space, and escape in books. Not just in reading them, but in creating my own stories as well. My love of writing was accompanied by another dream - to live in New Zealand. Another form of escape, perhaps, but both writing and moving to NZ have helped me to know myself, to find my life. In 1999 I boarded a plane for the first time and travelled to Christchurch, New Zealand to attend University of Canterbury. Within three days of arriving, I had met my future husband and several life-long friends. I studied Japanese Language and Literature and the new country that has been my permanent home since 2002. For the past 10 years I have been busy raising a family of four children and writing in whatever spare moments I could find for myself. Now that the children are all in school, I am grateful to be able to have more time to focus on living my dream, of developing my writing. It has been, and will be, a journey that is public and private all at once. I can't write without exposing some part of my inner self. So, I hope that those who are willing to take this journey with me won't be disappointed.