I have been writing for a long time (as evident by this photo!). And yet, I still find myself always searching for the right words. When in school, I often would start out my papers with a quote from some famous person—never feeling quite confident enough to hit the ground running with my own thoughts. I’m still on the quest for that great opener!

After switching from a dance major in college to an English major, I found myself interning in the Publishing department at the Jim Henson Company—located at the time in a beautiful old townhouse in New York City. I’ve been working in children’s publishing for over 20 years and have written and edited a wide range of children’s picture books, board books, and activity books.

Some of my favorite books as a kid were The Phantom Tollbooth, Anne of Green Gables, The Mouse and the Motorcycle, Charlotte’s Web, Mrs. Wigglesworth’s Secret, The Giving Tree, and Maxie. I remember my mother would always cry when reading The Giving Tree to me. Every single time. I didn’t understand why then (of course now that I have a daughter, I totally get it!). But I think that in seeing her emotions, I must have—on some level—recognized the power of a book. The power of words, and the power of pictures, to make people feel. And I knew that was special.