How it began...
It all started in Sacramento, CA. I "published" my first poem on the inside cover of my leather-bound presentation Bible when I was in First Grade. I was so proud of it that I copied it there--to my mother's horror, of course--because it was the only place I could think of where I was certain I wouldn't lose it. I have been writing ever since.
In junior high, I wrote short stories. Lots of them. I inundated my teachers with them and even had one published in a statewide magazine. I'm certain my mother saved a copy somewhere, but I was too young to appreciate the signficance of the achievement.
In high school, I was a journalist. I lived for the student newspaper, initially as copy editor and later as feature editor.
In college and medical school, I wrote term papers. Too many term papers. And I wrote medical histories and discharge summaries. And progress notes. Until my hand fell off.
And in 1990, my daughter was born. You could say I began my research for THE LEARNER'S PERMIT then, studying the intricacies of the mother/daughter relationship. I really managed to get that part down pat when she was in high school, and I taught her to drive. My husband spent some time traveling about the time she received her learner's permit, so the task initially fell to me. I am not complaining. I miss it now that she has her license.
After medical school, I returned to my journalism roots and wrote freelance articles for publications including BCM's Horse International Magazine, California Riding Magazine and Dressage Today. Apropros of my protagonist in THE LEARNER'S PERMIT, I have done the copywriting and web design for two major commercial websites, and I serve as the webmaster for a them, and a third, as well. I have my patients to thank for sharing their lives with me, so that I could understand the ways that grief manifests itself in a woman's life. I also thank Ann Hood, mentor and author of The Knitting Circle for helping me to get that part right.
I don't believe I'm stretching the truth when I say I've spent most of my life preparing to write THE LEARNER'S PERMIT. And once I started, I received some wonderful guidance from mentors at the Writers' Village University, an online writers' community, and most particularly, the Persist & Publish group within that community. They serve as loving midwives in the birthing process and encourage me to work hard at perfecting and polishing. Without their help, any semblance of success would be impossible.
And I've continued to grow as a writer. In 2007 and 2008, I spent an intense ten days at the Maui's Writers' Retreat and Conference, mentored by Anne LeClaire and Ann Hood, respectively, and in October 2008, I will complete a non-accredited MFA program focused on the short story that has been grueling, but probably the single best thing I have ever done with regard to my craft. The more I learn, the more I want to learn, and the more excited I become about sharing my craft with other authors so that we can learn and grow together.
THE LEARNER'S PERMIT is complete, and was a FINALIST in the prestigious 2008 Rupert Hughes Prose Writing Competition at the Maui Writers' Conference. I'm now working on my second novel, PRIVATE MESSAGE, and a third novel, BAKER'S SECRET, is on the back burner.
Click on the link to learn more
about THE LEARNER'S PERMIT.