My Why

Bookish Edition

Jan 17, 2024

I grew up in a family that looked *normalish* on the outside… But within my family, there was a lot of darkness. Dysfunctional. Illness. And in my case specifically, Trauma. (With a capital T!)

Don’t worry, readers, this will not be a triggering post. This is a fantasy romance space, after all, and I promise even here there will be a happy ending.

I learned to read very young. My mom always said that I was reading by three. And I remember reading actual books when I was four, so I trust Mom’s memory on that.

My mother never went to college and hardly finished high school. Back in the day, she was a work-study kid, which meant she attended classes in the morning and since she was emancipated by age 16, she worked as a receptionist in the afternoons to support herself.

Mom married young, had three kids young, and by her mid-thirties finally settled into a plan for her professional life. And that plan was writing romance novels. I remember being 7 and 8 years old and watching Mom underline pages of paperback books, breaking their spines and highlighting the covers. She made a vision board for herself by cutting the cover off a Harlequin romance and writing her name in marker over the real author’s name.

It took my mom many years to get published, but she did it. And she created a massive career from her passion, publishing more than 25 books with Harlequin and Silhouette, writing a nonfiction book that was optioned for film three times over ten years (That’s it’s own loooong story. Now that I live and work in LA, I have a lot more insight into entertainment and how things work.), and writing dozens of books that would never actually leave her hard drive.

My mom's first published romance; Mom with Nora Roberts and Ruth Ryan Langan

But back to my why.

When I was nine, I discovered a book that changed my view of the world. That book was A Wrinkle in Time. I resonated so deeply with Meg Murray, the awkward, not quite right girl who fiercely loved her little brother. My first book boyfriend was Calvin, and my love for quirky, smart, fiercely capable women was born from Mrs. Who, Mrs. Which, and Mrs. Whatsit.

Like a lot of kids who lose themselves in books, I clung to fantasy stories. To the hope they promised. To the caring adults, wonderful adventures, and possibilities of magic on every page.

When I started writing with the hope of publishing, I realized very quickly how hard it is. How much craft and discipline and patience goes into the process. You’d have thought that I would have learned that from my mom! But no. We each have to take our own path in life. There was no shortcut that got me here faster. All I had was the burning belief that it COULD be done. Not because of what I had or was or did—but in spite of all I wasn’t.

If Mom published more than 25 books without a degree or an editor or a huge budget, then I could find a way, too.

The books I write now are a blend of everything that I have ever believed in and cared about. Triumph over trauma. True love, despite the odds. Being seen and valued for our strengths even when life hammers hard on our weaknesses.

The series I’m working on now is inspired by the Twelve Huntsmen fairy tale. I always thought it was the strangest story. Gendered in bizarre ways. But what I love about it are the sisterhood of the women who become “huntsmen” to the king. The talking lion who isn’t believed and is banished for telling the truth but is later redeemed. And the message of true love conveyed by a ring under a glove in the most unlikely place. The story is now in the public domain, so you can find versions of it very easily:

Twelve Huntsmen

The Twelve Huntsisters series is so close to my heart. It deals with themes of trauma, loss, redemption, and coming into one’s true power. There are disguises, a heist, magic, and there will absolutely be a talking animal as a homage to Grimm’s lion… But it might take a few books to get there.

If you want to know why I think you’ll love this series, this is my why. Broken Bloodlines a story inspired by my personal life experiences—loss and illness, strength and protection, love and magic. Found family. Redemption. And more than anything, the happiest of endings for those who seem least likely to have them. I hope my why gives something special back to you.