I am a Christian author writing about the intersection of faith and doubt, where hope in something bigger takes root.
The very first story I ever wrote involved an enterprising hamster making a bid to take over the world. It was riveting. At least, my mom says it was. And since she’s a completely unbiased source, I’m sure we can take her word for it.
I’m equally sure all the publishers I would have submitted it to would have rejected it. And so we’ll never know whether Elwyn the hamster achieved his goal of world domination. By the time I had enough skill to rewrite his story into something that might have graced a bookstore shelf, I had moved on from small rodents to hard news. (Dare I say, big rodents?)
All dreams of fiction writing set aside, I chased the daily adrenaline rush of seeing my byline in newsprint. It’s heady stuff, especially when it’s on the front page and above the fold, where you can see it in the rack. I wrote about school board meetings, city council intrigue, and the occasional heart-warming feature. I even covered a few murders and one very big hurricane.
I never considered writing fiction again until I became an editor and no longer got to see my byline on the front page. Facing serious adrenaline withdrawals, I began plotting out my first novel. Eight years later, it finally hit the virtual store shelves as Look The Other Way.
What, you thought book writing was a quick and easy process?
My second book, Adverse Events, came out in 2022. That one came together much faster than the first one, you might think. And you would be right. But since I actually started writing it seven years ago, you’re only partially right.
But I'm a fast learner. It only took me a year to write and release the third book in the series, Washed By The Water. It came out in January 2024.
When I’m not writing, I have a day job as the features editor at WORLD News Group. It’s a national Christian media outlet that practices biblically objective journalism. I’m blessed to work on long-form story projects for our biweekly magazine and our daily podcast.
I’m also married, and my husband and I have a 10-year-old daughter. If you’re connecting her age with the big gap in my early writing, you’re quite insightful. Writing while parenting a small human is a challenge. We’re also involved in our church, where we serve as life group leaders. I’m president of the board at my daughter’s school, and I lead our local American Heritage Girls troop.
As my husband would tell you, it’s a lot. I don’t always like being so busy, but I love everything I do.