I’m thrilled to finally be able to share the fabulously fall-ish cover for my ninth foodie book for Scholastic, Pumpkin Spice Up Your Life. The Ninth Book in My Foodie Middle-Grade Series I love the tumbling leaves on the cover, and the beautiful autumnal colors. I especially love that scrumptious-looking Pumpkin Spice Supreme. About the...Read More
It’s almost Valentine’s Day! Where I live in the Northeast, February can be a dreary month. Comfort food and sweet treats are a great way to beat the winter gloom. Valentine’s Day is always an especially fun way to spread kindness and cheer in chilly weather. Inspired by my Scholastic foodie book, Donut Go Breaking...Read More
Today is National Pie Day, so I’m posting a new pie recipe inspired by my novel, I Only Have Pies For You. I admit to having a weakness for custard pie, and cherries are my favorite fruit. Pies are cozy, comfort desserts, and I loved writing about them in this book. The book is set...Read More
I’m thrilled to announce that You’re Bacon Me Crazy, one of my middle-grade foodie novels for Scholastic, is under development as a possible film with Scholastic Entertainment and the Hallmark Channel. While everything is still very early in the process, I’m keeping my fingers crossed that someday soon we may be able to watch a...Read More
The memories are vivid. December weather in Southern California rarely fell below freezing temperatures, but there was still a crisp nip in the air as we piled into my dad’s car to make our yearly pilgrimage to the “Christmas House.” The tradition began when I was around eleven or twelve, around the time my dad...Read More
It’s the holiday season. Snow is falling. The air is crisp and cold. The smell of cinnamon and fresh pine needles fills my house. This is one of my favorite times of year. It’s also one of the best times of year for cozy cups of hot cocoa. My latest hot cocoa recipe is inspired...Read More
One of my favorite parts of the writing process is deciding on and creating settings for my books. When I’m deciding on a setting, I consider interesting places I’ve visited and places my readers will find exciting and unique. In order for me to portray a setting realistically, it’s important for me to feel comfortable...Read More
The ideas for my stories come from many different sources. I’m inspired by people I meet, places I visit, adventures I’ve had, and even by my own dreams. My most recent middle-grade novel, A Tale Magnolious, was inspired by a dream about a real elephant named Mary. This is her story. Mary the Elephant Mary...Read More
As Halloween approaches, it’s time for little ghosts and ghouls to haunt local libraries and bookstores in search of spooky stories! If you’re prowling the dark for spine-tingling books, prowl no more. With the Trick-or-Reaters program and website, creepy tales are only a click away! About Trick-or-Reaters As described on the Trick-or-Reaters website, “TRICK OR...Read More
One of my newest middle-grade novels, A Tale Magnolious, centers on the deep and tender friendship between orphan Nitty Luce and Magnolious the elephant. Part of the reason I chose to write about Nitty and Magnolious is because I’ve always been fascinated by the connections I see between people and animals. Animals provide us with...Read More
