LIFE & ART
A lot of my life ended up in the pages of SPELLCAST. Like Maggie Graham, I grew up in Wilmington, Delaware, began performing at an early age, and – after a series of jobs in educational administration – ran away to the theatre.
I worked all over the place, including the Southbury Playhouse (a converted barn), Fort Salem Theatre (a converted church) and the City Line Dinner Theatre (a converted used car showroom). I met my husband while performing opposite him in the comedy Bedroom Farce. I attacked him with a table lamp. He threw me onto the floor. We’ve been together ever since.
I gave up acting to
write for the musical theatre, starting with song lyrics for
children’s shows and eventually, book and lyrics for two
full-length musicals. Meanwhile, I worked as a retail store clerk, an
accounts receivable manager, a merchandising director, and a temp,
eventually landing at a non-profit organization that ran a telephone
helpline. (Shades of Maggie again.)
Eventually, I returned to fiction. It was Sheila Gilbert, my editor at DAW, who suggested I draw on my theatre background to create the novel that became SPELLCAST. God forbid I think of it myself.
To read more about my life in art, visit my other self.