I graduated from Samford University with a degree in pharmacy, but all my life I knew that I wanted to write a novel “some day”. For me, “some day” came in 2003, when I started writing and never looked back.

My first two manuscripts remain firmly ensconced in the back of my closet (the dust bunnies tell me they really are terrific!). My third attempt became my first published novel.

A Promise to Remember and Leaving Yesterday were both finalists for the American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award, and Waiting for Daybreak was a finalist in Women’s Fiction for the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award.

Now Almost Amish has arrived in stores. I hope the busy women of today will read it and discover not only an interesting story, but also ways to simplify their lives in this crazy, hectic world.

People often ask me where I get my characters and if I base them on real people. The answer to that is: sometimes. Most characters have a little bit of someone I know in them. I use a lot of friend’s and family member’s names in my books, but I never write the character anything like their namesake.

For instance—in my books a middle-aged mother and a twenty-something pharmacist shared names with my daughters, and a seventyish-year-old man shared a name with my fortyish-year-old husband.

The one exception I make to this rule is my pets. Dusty the dog made a cameo appearance as himself in Waiting for Daybreak, Boots the cat made his debut in Leaving Yesterday, and Popcorn the turtle is incognito as a horse in Almost Amish.

Chance the new dog is still anxiously awaiting his turn for momentary fame—rumor has it, the dog has hired an agent.

On the homefront, I’ve been married to the wonderful and handsome Lee for nearly twenty-five years now, and our two daughters are currently braving the worlds of high school and college.

We’ve lived in Santa Barbara for over twenty years. It’s a beautiful place and I feel blessed to be here (although a seventy degree Christmas still leaves me dreaming of a white one—or at least a colder one!)

When I’m not writing or reading or braving seventy degree holidays, you’ll find me trying my best to keep up with my daughters in their various theater, softball, dance, and filled-with-activity lives.