frequently asked questions

Please don't be disappointed when I say no. I have always loved books, though. My parents read children's books to me when I was little. I thought I was big stuff when I was old enough to visit the library all by myself.

I read adult-level books after I grew up. Then made a complete circle back to chidren's books after I became a Mom and started reading them to my kids. That's when I remembered how much I loved children's books and decided to write my own.

I have two confessions to make. One is that I don't write words everyday. I do, however, spend time thinking about my story. I still call that writing. If I were you, I wouldn't tell my teacher that it's still homework just because you thought about it. The other confession is that while my house is picked up and neat, my office is not. I prefer to think that the clutter helps my creative process. Again, I wouldn't advise telling your parents that idea about your bedroom. ;)

I never talk about money. I'd rather tell you how old I am, and women hate to do that! Okay, so how old am I? I'm so old that no one had color television when I was born. People listened to records, not CD's or iPods. There was no way to record your favorite show if you were out when it was on. It was December of 1957. I bet you're good at math. Can you figure it out?

My favorite book was Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. My least favorite book was Little Red Riding Hood. When I was four years old I hid it under my clothes in a drawer because I thought the wolf was scary.

I just finished one! Ivy in the Shadows is being released February 5, 2013! But I always have stories running around in my head. Finding the time to get them out of my head and onto paper is the hardest part.

This is a good question but is the hardest one for me to answer. The best thing I can do is to write down an idea when it comes to me. Sometimes it takes years for that idea to become a complete book.

When I write a book, the characters become friends. We all like different things about each of our friends. I'd much rather you wrote and told me which one of my books was your favorite.

You can certainly make a request. Advanced Reading Copies are released at the discretion of the publisher and only up until the official publication of the book. To request an ARC, send an email to Macmillan publishers at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .