I'll read any books by Dean Koontz, Stephen King, Philippa Gregory, and Geneen Roth. For business books, I like Seth Godin's work, as well as Suzanne Evans. Both offer brilliant insights for business people.

I'm an avid gardener, and raise organic vegetables, fruit, herbs and flowers on my 17-acre farm. I love to be outdoors, and thrive on long walks, fresh air, and riding my bike or hiking the nearby Virginia state parks. I also sing with my church choir and like to play piano to relax.

Mostly from friends. I'm part of several writing groups, and writers love to read, so we are always sharing titles of books we've read recently that we like. I also enjoy browsing Smashwords for titles - it's a great site filled with talented people and good reads.

Yes! I was 12 years old and had just read a terrible children's novel. I threw it across the room and declared, "I can write a book better than that one!" And then it dawned on me, "Hey, I could." So I pulled out my mother's old manual typewriter and wrote a novel called Caroline about a princess who doesn't know she's a princess. That was followed by a fairly good fantasy novel called "Child of Wind and Sea" which I still have and keep meaning to rewrite. It has potential.

I keep a notebook of ideas, and jot down ideas for articles, blog posts and books throughout the day. When I'm ready to write, I create folders on the computer for the work, then develop a brief plan for the book. Next, I outline the book. I keep to a schedule of writing a section or at least 2-3 pages a day. I write my own materials first thing in the morning, before I write for my clients, so that I feel that each day I'm working towards my goal. After the manuscript is complete, I run it through spellcheck. I pay a professional editor to edit it, and then I revise it. From there, it's a matter of putting the final touches on the manuscript and publishing it.

I generally read memoirs, mysteries and science fiction.

Computer, phone, picture of my husband and at least one or more cats draped across the top. They love hiding behind the monitor while I write, sometimes pouncing on the monitor as the letters move across the screen. Someday, I hope one of them writes a novel for me!

I love sharing my imagination with others. When I hear from readers and they love a character or a novel, it makes my day.