I grew up in Georgia in a small, country town. A recovering tomboy and Dairy Queen princess, young me was good at kickball, jumping bike ramps, building forts, getting into fights with boys, and going barefoot in the Yellow River. Things I was never good with? Being graceful and staying clean. I belonged outside, roaming the neighborhood with buddies, finding adventures here and there, namely trekking to the store for a Big League Chew bubble gum "tobacco" pouch, or chasing cats around the yard.

 

Taught by my daddy to be a fierce competitor, I remember my fifth grade Field Day where I took home two blue ribbons--one in the three-legged sack race, and one in the tug of war contest. Good or bad, I excelled at being a tomboy and have the bumpy shin bones and random body scars to prove it.

 

These days I still live in the South with my husband (a smart, funny, and extremely tall Michigander) and spunky daughter. I work at Emory University, and attended Emory College in 2003-04, taking a creative writing class and an anthropology course. Before that, I took several classes at Georgia Perimeter College.

 

Besides writing, my other hobby is tennis.