Family is at the core of who I am which is why I'm sharing this picture of me and my family and why families are at the center of most of my books whether it is families torn apart by injury (Worth) or absence (The Year of the Sawdust Man) or drawn together by tragedy (Water Steps and The Keening) or seeking each other (Walking Home to Rosie Lee). 

When I'm not joining my family for a board game, a jaunt to the park, or a trip to the zoo, I'm usually writing or reading, but I'm also an associate professor of English at Greenville College in the academic year and a visiting associate professor in the Hollins University Summer Graduate Program in Children's and Young Adult Literature.

Family (l. to r.): Jeron, Regan, my husband, Dean, me (A. LaFaye), Adia, Kyler, Katie

As a kid I collected living salamanders and tree toads. My biggest collection was 22 tree toads and 7 salamanders, all living in a window well. My first book was called Phantom on the Terrace. It was a handwritten novel about a group of girls (me and my school friends) investigating a haunted house Scooby-style. I love to work in the garden—planting, weeding. My favorite flowers are poppies, roses, and hibiscus.