Each of my books took more than two years to write, counting the research time. Then it took another one or two years to get them published.

They take about a month.

Everywhere! Almost everything I learn I want to share with young people. Things I wanted to know when I was a kid. When I travel anywhere, you know what I need with me? My camera, binoculars, maps, and books – books about wildflowers, birds, trees, and more. I am always discovering something new and interesting!

The ideas for my books stemmed from family connections. The spark for Timberrr… started with stories my dad told about our family's logging operation. My dad told me so many stories of growing up in the logging camp during World War I that I just had to write Trouble in Nathan's Woods! The connection to Captain Mac and Ice Country is more roundabout. Our family’s sled factory made special sledges for Arctic explorer, Donald MacMillan. That led to my interest in his expeditions. While in Newfoundland researching MacMillan, I visited a cable station, and became fascinated by Cyrus Field and his amazing accomplishment of laying the first transatlantic cable.

I have sold nearly 100 articles, stories, and activities, and I have written some that have not sold. You can find my work in AppleSeeds, Calliope, Cobblestone, Faces, Highlights for Children, and a few other magazines. Several have been reprinted in textbooks, some are used for school testing programs, and a few are online.

Yes. Mostly nature photos. Five of my magazine articles have one or more of my photos included with them, I took a few of the photographs in Timberrr…, some in Captain Mac, and one in Cyrus Field's Big Dream.

The day I got my first pair of glasses, in Kindergarten. I was so excited to be able to see details, that I started writing out letters as fast as I could – drawing them actually, I suppose.

When did I start really writing? I wrote a few poems when I was 7 or 8. I remember writing term papers by fourth grade. Unlike most of my classmates, I had fun looking up stuff in big books at the library, sorting material, and writing term papers. When given a choice, I chose nature topics – I remember one about a Baltimore Oriole, another about moose in Maine.

As an adult, I wrote some training manuals for youth leaders. My first child was in college before I seriously started writing articles and books for young readers.

That's hard to say. Research is fascinating for me. Plus, I enjoy playing with words. I like fine-tuning my work, sort of molding it until it sounds smooth when I read it aloud. Magazine articles have to be short, so it is hard to fit in all the material! But I like that challenge. Another favorite part of being a writer is visiting schools, when I can share what I have written with young people, or help you learn to love writing too. And, of course, I love using my computer!

The fact that no one has figured out how to fit more than 24 hours in a day! Recordkeeping and marketing seem to take too much time. And sometimes, believe it or not, the challenge I like of fine-tuning my writing can be the very thing that frustrates me the most! Can you guess why? Because when I research (which I love to do!), I learn so many interesting facts that I can't fit them all into my finished work. And, of course, sometimes I hate my computer!

I enjoy introducing unusual and little-known topics to young readers. And I have fun!