It seems like I’ve always been reading.
Even before my first birthday,
I loved turning the pages of a book.

My reading in elementary school sometimes got me into trouble. I preferred finishing a book instead of doing my homework. Although it hadn’t occurred to me to be a writer, I did start to keep a journal. The entries abruptly ended when a neighbor girl stole my journal and read all the mean things I had written about her!

Seeing her hurt expression made me fearful of the impact of the written word, and I immediately put an end to journal writing and any thoughts of being an author.

Instead I studied sociology at Northwestern University and the University of Wisconsin, and social work at Columbia University. Then I worked as a social worker until my children were born. But I was still reading books, only now to my children. We had two sons and two daughters, so you can imagine that our house was always busy and noisy.

One child needed a peanut butter sandwich, another asked for help with spelling words, another longed for comfort for a skinned knee and another couldn’t turn on the bathtub water, often all at the same time!
The only quiet moments came after supper when darkness wrapped around our house and everyone was ready for bed. Then we would sit so close our skins touched and read together. Those peaceful, cozy times inspired me to write books that other adults and children could share.

But deciding to be a writer and becoming one is not something one accomplishes over night. It takes many years of learning one’s craft, writing and rewriting and also more reading.

When I’m not reading or writing books, I can most often be found outside taking a long walk or inside cooking in the kitchen. Or you might find me quilting, or knitting, or making a puzzle.

Other things I love to do include watching a spider spin her web, or a snail paint its trail, or a hummingbird hover over a blossom. And another thing I especially love to do is sit quietly and listen to my cat’s soft, rumbling purr.

And if you want to know more about me, go to your local library and read
SOMETHING ABOUT THE AUTHOR, VOLUME 76 edited by Diane Telgen and published by Gale Research Inc.

Contact me at ann@annwhitfordpaul.net