12 Things About Me
No. 1
I'm a former elementary school teacher, teaching K-6th grade, gifted and high achievers. My classes performed plays that I adapted from classic children's books.
No. 2
I swam with manatees and dolphins, and ran my hand across a stingray's backs.
No. 3
I've journeyed to Borneo and released a little ex-captive orangutan into the rainforest.
No. 4
Trekking through the Costa Rican rainforest, I spotted a pregnant field mouse, witnessing the birth of its tiny pink baby, as it escaped in terror from a pursuing snake.
No. 5
I studied in France.
No. 6
I rescue earthworms in the rain.
No. 7
I love orangutans, mountain gorillas, manatees, and octopuses.
No. 8
Among my favorite books are: Albie's First Word (Einstein) by Jacqueline Tourville, Giant Squid by Candace Fleming, The Watcher by Jeanette Winter, Wonder by RJ Palacio, The Crossover by Kwame Alexander, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, and Alabama Spitfire, The Story of Harper Lee and To Kill a Mockingbird by Bethany Hegedus and Ruth Bader Ginsberg Makes her Mark by Debbie Levy.
No. 9
I'm a long-time member of Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), attending many conferences, workshops, & writing classes, also through the Writing Barn, Austin, TX, and UCLA extension.
No. 10
2022 Most Promising Picture Book for Glued to Her Seat: How Claudette Colvin Battled for Equal Rights, SCBWI Central-Coastal California Writer’s Day (written with Doris Imahiyerobo)
2020 Mentorship for WNDB We Need Diverse Books
2019 Runner-Up for The Sparkling Gleam of Imagination, The Fantastical Fairy World of Arthur Rackham,
SCBWI Writer's Day (Thousans Oaks, CA)
2015 Runner-Up for Gleam of Light etc., SCBWI Editor's Day (Fullerton, CA)
2011 Runner-Up for Fine, Fine Froggy, SCBWI Writer's Day (Thousand Oaks, CA)
2009 Runner-Up for Beware the Hungry Giant, SCBWI Writer's Day (Thousand Oaks, CA)
2009 Home for Little Orangutan, SCBWI Writer's Day (Los Angeles)
No. 11
I received a B.A. (majoring in teaching, minoring in French, political science, and sociology) from UCLA.
No. 12
I attended Santa Monica High School in California.