Maui is beautiful, isn’t he? Those ice-blue eyes catch your attention. He has an unofficial fan club in the neighborhood. When we moved to Florida in 2019, we had a second dog, a collie named Maggie. She passed away several months ago (summer of 2020), living to be around 16. We don’t know her birthdate, as she was a rescue. If you can, please rescue shelter animals! They’ll love you for it.
I was born and raised in North Carolina, but my soul is from Florida. I worked long and hard to make the dream come true, with the support of my family. It is beautiful here, and warm. That’s something that seems to work its way into each of my novels, loving the beaches or warm weather. The biggest goal I have right now is to be able to write full time.
Something I’ve tried to do in my life is donating to charity. When I decided to write my first novel, I decided to give the money away, to help others. I’m going to do that as much and as long as I can. Whenever you buy one of my books to enjoy, you are also benefiting a charity. I will put the information on my site, tailoring it to each novel, so you can take a look for yourself. I try to relate the novel in some way to a particular charity. I love being able to give back.
My life is like anyone else’s, filled with challenges. I grew up in a two-bedroom mill house, 500-600 square feet. It was my parents, two brothers and me. My parents did without so we kids could have toothpaste and go to the dentist and the pediatrician. There wasn’t an abundance of food or clothes, but we got by. It made me determined to make a better life for myself. My parents said I was the first in the family (on both sides) to graduate from a four-year university and the first to earn a master’s degree. I did it while running my own farm and working full time – yes, I am proud of the achievement, and of being on the dean’s list. I tell my kids they can do anything because it’s true. Never give up.
Writing and Charities
My first three novels (written several years ago) all serve the maCares charity. One of my newer novels, The Stranding, is supporting maCares as well. You can find them here: https://www.macares.org/.
Winning Wonderland (if you’ve read the book you’ll have already guessed this) will be working to help Mothers Against Drunk Driving. You can find them here: MADD | Mothers Against Drunk Driving.