ABOUT
Beyond the Page
My perspective is shaped by a strong connection to family, by Hispanic culture and by a lifetime of long conversations with my dad on philosophy, ethics, politics, machismo, social issues and science fiction. Fiction provides an escape. I think the best escapes embrace life’s complexity and diversity of thought.
This philosophy shows up in every book I write — we grow right alongside the characters, into their happiness and our own.
When I’m not writing, you’ll find me reading, traveling, parenting, and having long conversations with my dad or my husband, still gathering the moments that shape the work.
INSPIRATIONS
I’m endlessly drawn to mythological fantasy and historical retellings. My shelves are full of stories where strong female protagonists change the world or change the course of the future.
I can’t stop exploring books that question the issues of society and the foundations upon which they were built.
Before I called myself a writer..
I became a writer at the kitchen table as a child when my dad invited me to polish poems alongside him. When I arrived in college, a professor told me I shouldn’t follow the 5-paragraph template when I wrote essays about history, philosophy, and science — think, he said, don't just structure.
My commitment to writing solidified over the years as I dreamed up stories while waiting in line or sitting on the bus to New York City.
Each of those moments taught me that writing helped me crystallize my thoughts and slow them down. Now writing is core to my day-to-day life, how I communicate, and how I process the big questions about my place in the world and what matters.
WHAT I AM EXPLORING NOW
Right now, I’m writing about demons trying to survive in a human world and asking myself whether control is inherently evil, and whether the greater good is worth what it costs the individual