Hello,

From the time I was little, I wanted to be a teacher. I’d make flashcards with words and pictures, to teach my “class” of stuffed animals and dolls how to read. Many years later, I became a real teacher and I loved my work. I really enjoyed teaching about the Oregon Trail, the Chicago Fire, archaeology and immigration.

 

I think that’s why I’m a nonfiction writer for kids. I still do all the research, like I did as a teacher. But instead of standing in front of a classroom, I write it down in books. I enjoy finding little-known stories and shining a light on them. 

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Of course to be an author, you need to know how to write. That’s why I went back to school. In January, 2018, I graduated from Hamline University in St. Paul, MN with an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Did you know you could enroll in a college program that’s all about writing for kids?

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I lived in Schaumburg, Illinois for twenty years and spent most of that time teaching at Lincoln Prairie School, in Hoffman Estates. I moved to Madison, Wisconsin a few years ago, where I could be closer to my children and grandsons.