I’m not trying to brag (not much, anyway), but my writing has been described as ‘poetic’ or ‘elegant’ and so on. This isn’t because I’m unusually talented. I believe it’s because I grew up with music. Classical, blues, even some rock. I also grew up with poetry, both spoken and on the written page.

So I appreciate the music and rhythm of poetry wherever I find it, even in a mystery, a romance, or a nonfiction piece about anything you can think of. The lilt of phrases, the music of words, the clear and concise way meaning and words flow together.

I hope when you read my latest work-in-progress, The Healer, the third and last of the Wilderness Women series, you will find that it flows naturally, rhythmically, and musically, telling a tale while also showing by word and phrase what it’s like to live in the forest.

And I know that I’m not the only person on the planet who loves poetry wherever she finds it.