Bio

Born in New York, NY, I have always been a creative. As a child sprawled on my bedroom floor on rainy afternoons, I wrote dozens of pages of stories. I spent hours recreating art techniques I learned in school. As a teenager I attempted songwriting and guitar lessons, and sang on stage whenever someone let me. I bought the entire set of Bob Ross paints and products and painted my own canvases. But what I first set my professional sights on was music. 

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I love the way music speaks directly to our hearts and connects us to others who feel the same (just like a good book!). In music, I found both community and confidence. Even though creating music was no more than a hobby, just listening to music has always made me feel like I can do anything. And I wanted to change the world. 

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So as a bright-eyed 20-something-year-old, I discovered a few things as I worked my way around the music business: I wasn't a very good band manager. Reviewing concerts turned out to pay much less than selling advertising at a music magazine. Eventually, I knew something was missing: I wasn't creating positive change. So I started singing a different tune and attended Bank Street College to become a reading teacher. Uplifting children became my greatest goal, and I loved helping students feel empowered, as music has done for me. 

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Along the way, I fell deeply in love with another song: picture books. I started to realize that I've always been drawn to them. In college, I created homemade velvet-covered picture books for my loved ones (they truly are for all ages!). And when I needed just the right books for my own children to help them process their experiences, I wrote them myself, and my kids colored them in. It took a pandemic and a very supportive husband to help me realize that the song I was meant to sing was that of a writer. 

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Picture books, to me, are music. The words sing through rhythm, tone, and emotion, like lyrics complemented by harmonic illustrations. I shape my stories to speak to children like music, melodies that show them they can do anything.

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I am on a never-ending journey to improve my craft and to connect with a community of others like me. And what I discover day in and day out is this: being on this journey lifts me up like a symphony. I flourished as a 2023 PB Rising Stars mentee, and I am thrilled to have been chosen (twice!) as a recipient for a 12x12 Picture Book Challenge Silver Diversity Scholarship, so I can continue to learn, grow and connect with this amazing collective of creators. I am also an active member of SCBWI, a graduate of Children’s Book Academy, an occasional proofreader for my local LI SCBWI chapter newsletter, and here in Port Washington, NY, a local Story Time host. 

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I hope to spread the spirit of joy, empathy and belonging to readers everywhere, and to empower children to follow their own tune.