Generally I'm hit with an idea just as I'm trying to go to sleep so my process tends to start with notes on the general idea. My second step is plotting or outlining the basic story. I always want some sort of idea where I'm going with an idea before I start typing. After that I'm either researching and picking character names or diving in head first depending on the story type. I tend to look at the actual story writing as my quiet time but i like little breaks as opposed to giant chunks of time spent typing. I get going and just need to stop and breathe!

I'm a bookworm and I love anything where I can create. To me, writing is the best of both of my loves. I get to create my own stories. All of my life I've read or watched a movie and immediately wondered what would have happened if characters made different decisions. I would play with alternate story lines in my head so it seemed only natural to create my own stories from scratch instead of playing with other people's ideas. I love the escape from reality to a world that works off of my rules and can be as fantastical or magical as I choose and that happily ever is only pages away.

When I was seven years old I took scraps of notebook paper and wrote small poems. Each poem was only ten or so lines. I kept them folded up and hidden in a box under my bed, until high school when I threw them out. I still regret getting rid of them, silly though they were.

The first thing I ever read was one of my brother's school books. The theme of the book was imagination. I was four years old and being a November baby they used to let us start kindergarten right before our fifth birthday. My brother came to me the summer before I was supposed to start school (he is five years older than me and in those days the kids could keep the school books if they were being retired) and sat me down telling me very sternly that if I was going to his school in the fall I was not allowed to be dumb and that I was going to learn to read. I read every page of that book including one about a squirrel that lived in a sequoia tree. I remember because that was the hardest word for me to read in the entire book. I asked my dad for help with it so my brother wouldn't find out.

I tend to love romance and horror. I've always enjoyed paranormal and when it end up mixed with a good love story I'm in my own personal heaven. I'll read anything if it catches my eye and I find it interesting, but paranormal fiction would be my go to.

No question on this one, my kids. My kids are what keep me going no matter what comes.

If I'm reading e-books I'm doing it on my old first gen Nook. I love that thing. I know I should probably upgrade, but my Nook has traveled all over the country with me and I'm attached to it now.

Pens, pens, and more pens! I have about fifty pens currently on my desk. Fine line markers, black and colored roller ball, gel pens in a variety of colors and a few random cat shaped pens just because. I use ink for notes and for art so the pens really run the show. I have the usual monitor, keyboard and mouse, and a few notepads in a neat stack, but the pens own the most real estate.

I'm a pretty terrible painter, but I love doing it. I enjoy drawing generally with ink, but I'll play around in other mediums if I'm in the mood. I like to experiment with different art styles and techniques just to see how they feel. Of course there is also the devouring of books when I have a free moment so reading is another big hobby.

Anyone who enjoys what I write is a gift! I spend so much time trying to make my stories the best they can be and when someone enjoys them it makes it feel like I've truly succeeded. Even if no one ever read what I wrote I would keep writing, but having someone to share the things I create with feels wonderful. Fans mean the world!