I first started writing in 2008. It was my first year of college, and I wasn't settling in well. I was super homesick and anxious. The only way for me to process how I felt was to write about it. Those early scribbles would later become the very first book I published in 2014, The Hunted One. The book as it is now looks nothing like those early chapters I wrote in 2008, but it will always remind me of where I started.

My favorite authors are Andrew Davidson, Laini Taylor, Maggie Stiefvator, Jonathan L Howard, and Mary Higgins Clark.

The opportunity to make that day a little better than the day before. Whether that's working on a new book that I'm trying to make better than the last or a workout where I'm trying to push a little bit harder than the day before. Also, coffee. Coffee is very important inspiration as well.

When I'm not writing, I'm coaching rowing for high school girls. It's a passion of mine, and something I look forward to every day.

My writing process is DRAMA. I procrastinate until the last minute, and then I basically don't sleep for weeks while I work. It's horrible and wretched and I'm trying to change. But I always start every book with a very detailed outline. From there, I write as linearly as possible, but I do deviate according to if I'm particularly inspired to write a certain chapter or scene that day. After the draft is finished, I typically do a very detailed self-edit. At least a few rounds of that before it goes off to the editor for line edits and proofreads!

I don't think they were the first stories I read, but I when I was younger, I had this subscription to a Saddle Club monthly book box. I looked forward to that package every day until it arrived and then I would devour the books. Between The Saddle Club and Nancy Drew mysteries, I developed my love of reading.

Cover design is tricky and something that I feel like I always get wrong. The cover isn't for the author; it's for the readers, and sometimes that difference is tough to navigate. Typically, I look first at the genre I'm publishing in. From there, I see what books are doing well and what cover attributes they share. My designer and I work from there. We aim for fitting in while still being original and different in the details.

My favorite book is The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvator. It's so atmospheric and sensory. Maggie writes in such a way that you can taste the ocean spray and feel the island's wind on your face. It's amazing. I can re-read that book over and over and never get tired of it because I always find a new detail every time I read it.

I read pretty widely for pleasure. I love mysteries and thrillers. I also enjoy good atmospheric literary fiction. I will also never tire of good young adult fantasy, like the Throne of Glass series by Sarah J Maas.

Kindle! It's just too easy.

Writing the next book. Techniques or strategies are always changing. They come and go, and by the time you feel like you've mastered them, they're changing. But the one that will never change is just simply writing the next book. That's the trick your readers will appreciate the most, so it's the one I focus on. To the detriment of my newsletter and Facebook page. Oops.

Barely contained chaos. Also, dusty because I recently got a new puppy, and I've been sitting with him on the couch with my laptop.