In all honesty - I hate working in a call center. I had some really - REALLY great jobs and when the economy turned sour, it seemed I was caught, if not in the first or second round of layoffs, I was cut in the end. When the health insurance for my family was just weeks away from ending, I think it was a week or less when working for the call center that I had health insurance again. It was close! Too close! I had to protect my family's heath and my husband's self-employed business was too small to finance health insurance for us all. So, with reading books that were selling great, but the storyline didn't entertain me, I decided to pursue my dream to write stories that readers would enjoy and be entertained. Of course, hopefully it will be of some financial gain so I can afford health insurance for the family and quit working in a call center, and that's why I became and indie author.

I enjoy being with my family. My husband of over 30 years, makes me laugh and I enjoy spending time with him. Our two boys work at my husband's business Aiello's Cigar Bar, that has bocce ball courts with leagues Monday through Thursday during the week. I enjoy playing competitive bocce and the many people that have become very good friends from his establishment. There are many good people in this world, and I have found some of the best in this establishment.

What I love about writing...I love my characters. Hearing, seeing them breath and their reactions is what wrote the trilogy.

The second book in the Threads of the Departed Trilogy - Unraveled continues on with Agnes journals and learning more about the girls life as the years passed from youngsters to adults where Patty inherited not only her momma's looks but her deceptions as well - but was it really Patty's quest?

The book cover for Strands was simple. The black represents the darkness of the story, where the red represents the evil that hides within the characters. The embroidery with the strands hanging to its side represents the weaving of the story and how it interconnects to the characters. Life is connected, it is a small world, and not everyone is bad and evil. I used the white to make sure it grabs the reader's attention and I hope it captures an eye of the reader.

My desk seems to be in disarray, disorganized and cluttered. My husband will attest to that. But I know where things are and I can find whatever I am looking for - so don't mess with it! I have a madness to my organization. (Just don't ask me about my handbag - as long as I can find my debit card - I'm good!)

I find the best way to write is to let the characters talk to you. When you see their facial expression, feel their thoughts and live the experience, it makes writing so much easier. Let them write the story.

All of Harry Potters series, Hunger Games and Janet Evanovich books. I love the characters and their story lines. I envision the characters as I read the story. If it captures my imagination, I'll read on and read more of their works. If the characters aren't strong and believable, I'll stop reading.

For the last three years, it has been my books Threads of the Departed Trilogy. Working on Strands, then Unraveled and Frayed making sure that they are lively, imaginable and encapsulating, it takes time to make sure that the future readers will enjoy all of them as much as I did allowing the characters to write themselves and one book will take them to read the next. When I do get to read, I enjoy historical fiction, mysteries and suspense.

In my younger years, I wrote poems and only dreamed of writing novels. It wasn't until I read some pretty shabby books that sold millions, that I thought I had to give it a chance. Plus, when you have to do something to get away from a pretty crappy job, why not try writing.

I wrote Threads of the Departed Trilogy - Strands under the influence of people who love - and I mean LOVE North Carolina. Now, I've been to the Charlotte airport and I truly believe that to be the nicest airport in all of US. I hope to one day be invited to enjoy the beauty of the entire state, and after researching as much as I did for history (1920-1938) of NC, I'm in love with the state too. There is so much more history than I could capture in 3 books. From the blue ridge mountains to the Ocracoke - outer banks and the mystery of Blackbeard and treasures, I tried as well as I could to excite my readers as I found it to excite me.

Readers are the greatest asset to any writer. I am humbled that my readers are enjoying my first book Strands in the Threads of the Departed Trilogy. I hope I can capture their imagination, place them in the surroundings, feel the characters emotions, and laugh and cry as it made me when I wrote the story. I greatly appreciate their kindness and the great reviews they are sharing after they read the story. I truly don't want to disappoint any one of them.

I can say this...it's not my current employment working in a call center.