I was born in northeastern Ohio. I've taught and practiced law, but more recently I've written fiction, poetry, essays, and reviews of the arts. I've enjoyed writing about the area where my parents grew up, in western Pennsylvania. I have fond memories of visiting there when I was young.

My first novel, Osaka Heat, is available now. Osaka Heat 's protagonist, American school teacher Ginger O'Neill, finds herself in hot circumstances during a month-long visit to Japan. Caught between cultures, Ginger is also caught between her future and her past. By journey's end, she discovers there is more to her than even she knew.

My writing often references the arts. I enjoy painting, and I use many different mediums and techniques. I especially like working with transparent watercolor on paper. I've taken classes in botanical illustration, abstract painting, portrait and figure drawing, pastel drawing, watercolor and acrylic painting, and calligraphy.

Music is also a big part of my life. The piano is the instrument I always come back to, but I've also played the violin, the cello, the double bass, the clarinet, the guitar, the ukulele, and the harmonica. I like to listen to opera, jazz, rock and roll, and world music.

My husband, Herb, and I have two grown sons. Our family enjoys boating. We like to skim along the shoreline of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries, watching for heron, butterflies, osprey. Nature inspires my writing and my painting, and boating offers many challenges of its own.

My favorite color is orange, and my favorite food is sushi.