All About Me

I was born and raised on farms in southern Alberta, Canada, with two older sisters and one older brother. My family was kind and loving, but as the youngest by several years I spent quite a bit of time on my own. For those times I invented two imaginary friends with the unlikely names of Juty and Barrette. They were very good company, always played the exact games I wanted to play and never, ever went away in a huff.

I loved living on the prairies. I also loved books. From the time I was little my mom read to us every night and my dad recited dramatic poetry. My favourite stories, when I grew old enough to read on my own, were books by Laura Ingalls Wilder (Little House on the Prairie, etc.), Just So, Mary stories (lots of magic involved) and The Dana Sisters (mysteries similar to Nancy Drew but better in my estimation). I was about ten years old when I realized I wanted to be an author.

After that, although I had many other hobbies and interests, I also spent a good deal of time writing stories. I wrote quietly and secretly, never telling anyone my plans.

The first stories I tried to have published, sent out secretly when I was in high school, were promptly rejected. So were the next batch. And the next. I didn't give up, however. I went ahead with other things , further education and numerous jobs , but I continued to write. I finally learned to do two things - write with great care and write about what truly intrigued me. My stories began to sell!

Today there are over forty "Hazel Hutchins" titles published in Canada, the U.S., Britain and beyond. I left the prairies but was lucky enough to live with a wonderful husband in another beautiful part of Canada - a town in the Rocky Mountains.  I have three great children (now adults!) and a dog.  I love to ski, hike, canoe, bike, birdwatch, read books and ... first and always ... write stories.

Quick Question:

Quick Answer:

C. More than 12 times. Sometimes as many as 50 times! I don't like rewriting any better than you do, but it's the only way to make the stories as good as I want them to be.

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