My favorite way to get to know a new someone is to ask them, “Tell me three things about yourself.” I figure turnabout is fair, so here are three (true) things about me.
Thing The First:
I am a water person. I am very happy when I am in, on, or in proximity to bodies of water. I swim, scuba dive, sail, wakeboard, slalom ski, Nordic and downhill ski (frozen water), kayak (ocean and river), outrigger paddle, stand-up paddleboard, drift, float, snorkel, surf, wade… You get the picture. I was a river guide on rivers in the Western United States for seven seasons, and I have the great good fortune to live on the banks of a wild and scenic section of the Deschutes River in Oregon.
Thing The Second:
Even though I have been paid actual money to: ride and train Morgan horses, fight fires, guide people down rivers, act in plays on the stage, serve food and beverages in various places reputable and rather not, clean houses, do voiceover work, write, edit the writing of others, teach various skills from kayak rolling to public speaking, assist and teach at the university where I got my second MFA, teach indoor cycling classes, and myriad other little jobs that have kept the dogs in kibble, one thing I love to do so much I cheerfully and gratefully do it for no money at all is SING.
I had a brief and unsuccessful stab at being an opera singer but I am lucky to still get to use my big voice whenever my choir needs a mezzo-soprano soloist.
Thing The Third:
I love to read. I am a writer because first I was a reader. And, while I am influenced by the writers I read as an adult, what made me want to write myself were the books I read when I was a kid.
Here are some of the ones I love-love-loved (and still do):
The Black Stallion by Walter Farley
The ur-horse book for a horse-crazy kid who wanted to be worthy of a horse’s trust. How I wanted to be Alec.
Now We Are Six by A. A. Milne
My mom read these poems aloud, and that taught me to memorize poetry. Although why she often murmured, “There was a little girl who had a little curl…” in my direction, I cannot imagine.
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
I loved every single kid’s book Roald Dahl wrote, but this one grabbed me the most. A humongous peach you fly away from home on and can eat at the same time? Perfect!
The Treasure of the Isle of Mist by W.W. Tarn
Okay, this is a fabulous book! Read it. Just read it now. (Then you will understand why I love books where adults do not solve the problems and why I do not trust fairies.)
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
Swords. Talking horses. A world you get to through a wardrobe. Freedom, treachery, responsibility, and enormous love. It has everything and wow—did it make me want to write stories.
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Oh, Jo March. I was surprised/relieved/pleased to realize Alcott had written somebody just like me into a book well before I was born.
The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper
This five-book sequence cemented my love of fantasy and my absolute belief in books that tell epic stories of good and evil—and of the ability of kids to solve epically bad situations for the good of the world.
P.S. You’ll note I put in links to Powell’s Books in Portland, Oregon instead of links to a certain other online bookseller. Support your local independent bookstore, okay? Go in, talk with real people, and get their recommendations. It’s way funner than being on a computer. And walking around and breathing fresh air is good for any reader..