I don't really have a purpose in mind when I write. I usually start with an image rather than an idea or a purpose. For some reason, a certain image is stuck in my mind. I describe it, and the scene around it, and the characters involved, and that becomes a story. I don't have any purpose other than to evoke emotion in the reader.

I am usually working on more than one project at once so it's hard to say how long it takes to complete one project. I think it takes me about a year to write a novel.

When my writing is going well, I feel realy happy. That's why I keep doing it. The rejection letters were hard, but I did get some positive feedback from some editors. Even if they didn't want to publish my stories, they told me that I had ability and gave me some guidance. That kept me going.

I think my children are proud that I am a writer. They know that even if some of the characters are modeled on them, they are never exactly like any one person. They are a mixture of many people.

I usually write in my tiny study. It has a desk with a computer in it, book shelves, and two big windows that face the back yard. When the kids were little, I watched them through the window as I wrote.

I don't wait for inspiration. If I did, I would not have the writing skills when I was inspired. Writing is like doing exercise. If you don't do it a lot, you can't do it well. I don't write every day, but I probably write four days a week.

I liked The Secret Garden, The Yearling, Oliver Twist, The Little House in the Big Woods, The Boxcar Children. I think The Secret Garden was my favorite.

In sixth grade, I decided I wanted to be a writer. I liked making clay sculptures too, but I felt like I was better at writing than at artwork.

I usually like my most recent book the best. When I reread my books, there are always things I wish I could change. I never feel satisfied, and I think that I can do better next time.

I don't think I'll write a real sequel, but I may write more novels with some of the same characters at a different point in their lives.

Sometimes after I finish a project, I have trouble starting a new one. I think that I might run out of ideas...but then I always think of something new and get going. Reading biographies of artists/writers/dancers helps me get over writer's block.

I like green a lot.

I like cats the best but I like dogs too as long as they are gentle.

I like to hang around with our family and go for walks. I walk almost every day, even when the weather is bad.