I grew up in a suburb of Chicago with five brothers and sisters. We were taught early on that academics were the gateway to success and there was constant competition in our house. Lucky for me, I excelled in art, something that is difficult to learn if you don't have raw talent. I wasn't a very good writer growing up. I didn't pick up the bug until after college, and even then, I would characterize my skill level at story-telling as predictable and provincial. But I believed, and still do, that nothing worth doing is easy and that you cannot finish what you do not start. I have also learned to be patient over the years. If I get stuck on something I'm writing about, I'll let it stew knowing that it will come to me eventually...even if that's years from now.

My first "novel" was awful. I wrote it after college and even spent a lot of money on one of those author services that "reviews" your work for a fee...what a waste of money! (By that, I mean the comments were too brief to be constructive.) But my husband encouraged me, even if he was steaming behind closed doors. After graduate school, I was so inspired by a French folktale I read about during my studies, I decided to write a fictionalized version of it set during the Civil War. "The Earl of Hampton" took me five years to write...and write and re-write. Because of all the rewrites, I ended up with a better product, but the opportunity to publish by traditional means had dried up. I was on my own and that's when I discovered Smashwords.

The book I'm working on now is based on a true story. It's set during the Depression in Little Italy (Chicago) and is a tragic love story. This is one of those projects I had to set aside for a while to let "stew" and it's been stewing for a few years. I'm just about ready to give it a go again. But I have to clean up another book I finished a few years ago and get the cover done before getting back to the love story.

I like the freedom and control I have being an indie author. I have tried traditional publishing and everyone has their hands in the pie, so to speak. You can spend a lot of time and money having someone review your work and still end up with nothing to show for it. The world of publishing is changing. For me, it's satisfaction enough to just have my work out there. If I develop a following, that's simply icing on the cake.

I don't have boundaries. So far, I have published academic papers (and won awards for them), wrote historical fiction, a YA book with my twin sister (see Europium: Secrets of Leeland Falls by L.M. Dempsey), a fictionalized memoir (soon to be published) and now I'm working on a love story with gangsters, crooked law enforcement and family secrets during the 1930's. I haven't been pigeon-holed and I love that. Who says I have to stick to one genre of writing? Life's too short to set artificial boundaries.

I like to tell stories and I think I'm getting to the point where I'm pretty good at it. I have learned from my mistakes and I'm not afraid to try new things. I know my earlier works were not perfect, but what piece of writing ever is? Have you read War and Peace? I loved it and I hated it. Talk about a train wreck if it were shown to a modern-day editor/publisher. They would have butchered the manuscript by removing all the sections on war strategy. But for those of us who can appreciate the context it offered, I'm not sure I would take anything away. I also like the idea of writing "old school." By that, I mean taking my time to tell a story. So many books are written for readers with the attention span of a gnat. I'm trying really hard not to go there and it feels like a victory when I'm not forced to change my writing style for fear that someone won't understand what I'm trying to convey.

Fans? I'm not sure I have any except those I'm related to...and they have to purchase my books out of family obligation.

My sister wants to write another YA book. She's a great story-teller. But my mind is full of other things I have to check off my list before I can focus on what's next.

I loved reading Steven King growing up. I think "It" was the scariest book I've ever read and I still can't help myself from cowering from a clown. I just picked up a book by Tim O'Brien called "The Things They Carried." It was assigned to my kids to read in high school. I have to say, Mr. O'Brien is one of the best story-tellers on the planet and I can learn a lot from him.

I love my "day job." I manage an employee assistance program for my company. I get to help people and use all the tools I picked up over the years: design, marketing, writing, strategy, social science, business, presentation skills... the list goes on and on. Like being an indie author, I have the freedom to take the program where I think it should go. And I've resisted being bound by the traditional business model. That freedom feeds my creativity and keeps me motivated to do other things that I love to do.

My husband would probably say I start a lot of projects and finish few. Yes, I tend to bounce around a lot. I like to try new things. Recently, I started beading and making other types of jewelry. I love to sew and I've been dabbling in period costumes. Right now, I'm working on a 1880's French Mardi Gras bat costume with a hoop skirt, corset and huge wings. I've given myself eight weeks to complete it, otherwise it will become next year's costume. No worries! It is what it is.