I was born in the coastal city of Rockland, Maine, with the sea in my blood. My grandfather was an island lobsterman and my uncle fished the Grand Banks. As a child, I delighted in exploring the beach with my grandmother, collecting shells and sea glass. I also started writing poems and stories when I was a child.

Trained as a teacher, I taught elementary school for thirty years. It was while I studied Maine with my fourth grade students that I developed an interest in lighthouses. That led to the writing of my first three picture books featuring true stories of dogs and the sea published by Down East Books.

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I was a voracious reader as a child, devouring books about space, dinosaurs, ancient Egypt, fairy tales, you name it, but my favorite was mystery stories. A huge fan of Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, it now gives me pleasure to write the same type of thrilling, chilling tales for today's kids--the Key Mysteries. 

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With all this writing, you might wonder how I have time to do anything else! But I have lots of interests and hobbies including gardening, photography, painting, hiking, cross-country skiing, playing piano, Irish dancing, performing in a Celtic music group, and of course READING!