Growing up in the country and mountains has given me a wide arena of experiences and stories from which to draw. Some of the things that I included in my latest story actually happened. The Summer Days Series is a way for me to weave those experiences into a story for my readers enjoyment. I am very excited to share them with you!!

Piles! Always been that way, hope to change it after I am 95 years old or maybe a little sooner.

I grew up in North Central Idaho. I suppose it influenced my writing as it would have influenced my reading. Escape. A way to move outside the rural setting. I also believe it gave me a realistic perspective on life. Incidently, I love where I grew up.

I started writing when I was very young. I have boxes of nearly illegible cursive handwritten poems, notes, thoughts and such from as young as 9 or 10 years old. My writing really flourished in High School, where my teacher hated to grade my 3,000 word 500 word compositions. I was addicted!

Who has time to search for an agent?! It almost harder to find an agent than a publisher. I have a friend who is also an author that gently nudged me in this direction. It has been an inspiration to dust of several manuscripts for submission.

Communication. I feel like I can actually get my thoughts to fly in formation. I read what I wrote, tweak it and then read it again. I get satisfaction when I finally feel like I haven spoken my mind.i

Living life to the fullest! I never stop working, doing, or experiencing. I believe that many things are possible to those who try...and so I do! Really, though, I am currently raising children. If you have or have had little children in your home then enough said.

I begin my search by author generally. I have a few favorites. Then I look at category, having 3 or 4 that I trend towards. On Smashwords, I do like everyone else and scour the first 4 or 5 pages of newest releases. :-)

That's tough. Not really, I have many, many papers that I wrote all sorts of things on.

First, idea. This has to pass a pretty tough filter to get to paper (or file). I do a lot of planning and structuring in my head first. Not to say I plan it all out, but to me the story has to have strong foundations in reality and possibility most of the time. I do write a lot of non-fiction essays that take days to really think out and then you can't hold me back once I get to typing. If it is a longer piece, I write a little and then walk away. Sometimes I write a lot and then walk away. Bottom line: My mind never shuts off so I am always building the story, rejecting events or ideas, and editing in my absence.

Photographic. I like things to look real if possible. I want to look at a book's cover and my eyes to glaze over, wishing I were there looking around at what is going on. That is what I am striving for. You be the judge.

I use an iPad mini.

As an author, immeasurably. I have written a lot, but never had published a book, until Smashwords. Now my works are out there and are gaining exposure paving the way for additional works.

Herman Wouk, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Michael Crichton, Tom Clancy, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Louis L'amour, Vince Flynn, Robert Ludlum, and more. I try different authors often, but find myself drawn back to these authors most often for various reasons.

The alarm clock.