I love writing.  It’s what I do best, getting it right down to the last word.

Over the decades, I’ve worked for various agencies as a copywriter, both fulltime and freelance.  My specialties?  Fashion, home décor, and retail copy for catalogs, brochures, and direct marketing—but I’m also all about thinking conceptually and shaping longer pieces for magazines and the web.

Since finishing my doctorate in Creative Writing, I’ve balanced my freelance work with teaching writing and literature at the college level. I’ve also pursued my personal creative work. My latest novel, While He Was Away (Sourcebooks), is due out in Spring, 2012. My previous novel, Dream Journal (Hyperion), was a 2006 Young Adult BookSense Pick. I've also published an award-winning children’s book, Lucy’s Family Tree. My short stories and articles have appeared in literary journals and magazines, and have received various awards, including a Pushcart Prize, an Illinois State Arts Council Grant, and in 2008, first prize awards for memoir and devotional magazine writing from the Evangelical Press Association.

I’m seasoned.  I’m flexible.  I work well solo and in a group. 

I’d love to get the words right for you.