About

When I was in eighth grade, my short story on Christmas trees was featured in the school’s holiday newsletter. My tender years spent scribbling stories in spiral notebooks and wordsmithing with my tattered thesaurus were suddenly validated by Mrs. Quinn, my favorite teacher, and I have been writing ever since.

Since I loved writing and reading so much, I went on to earn a BA in English from Cortland College and an MA in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Sociological Perspectives in Literature from Stony Brook University.

After my first child was born, my passion for creative writing was rekindled. Motivated by maternal love and countless cups of tea, I started to again write poems and short stories, feverishly dashing off a memoir that had long been tucked away in the corners of my mind. But by the time my fourth child came along, I was mindlessly stepping over knee-high stacks of picture books on the floor – the bookshelves already bursting – and my adoration and appreciation for children’s literature had become a matter of course.

In 2016, I was selected to fill one of the twelve coveted spots in the  Children’s Literature Fellowship Program at Stony Brook Southampton under the direction of Emma Walton Hamilton. Having the good fortune of being mentored by notable authors and editors in the year-long curriculum, I graduated in 2017 with an Advanced Graduate Certificate in Children’s Literature. 

I write across genres with a current focus on picture books (fiction, non-fiction, and blended) and memoir. Being a mother of four children (and a menagerie of pets!) has undoubtedly shaped my writing in the best ways possible. Especially in picture books, I aim to meet readers where they are, finding that a little humor and heart can go a long way. A carful of groceries might be left unpacked for a while if there is a last chapter calling to be read or I rush the kids to see the sun just minutes from setting on the bay. We’ve been known to cause a little traffic jam at school if a praying mantis needs saving on the sidewalk in the pick up line too.