I live in upstate New York with my husband and cuddly keeshonds. My passion for writing and research stems from my former work in healthcare administration and as a professor. When not tracking some morsel of history to shape into a story, I’m a tomboy at heart who loves to hike and bike all around the world. If only I could still climb trees. SIGH!

BTW, that’s really me pictured above, pulling the lanyard to fire an authentic Civil War cannon. I was bestowed the honor by my hosts, reenactors from the U.S. Naval Landing Party (USNLP). What a blast! Pardon the pun. Note how I’m sporting cavalry garb to honor women soldiers in the American Civil War–especially my primary protagonist from Sweet Glory, Jana Brady (aka Johnnie Brodie of the Tenth New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment). My marine friends loaned me a real (non-discharging) Colt revolver, holster, and waist belt for the day and, with my toy saber, I was ready to go to battle–that is, try to trip up other Civil War enthusiasts with my quizzes for a free bookmark and showcase my books.