Picture books are where I began. I think I was about twelve when I wrote and illustrated my first book. It was about pumpkins and incorporated the names and characters of my five nephews living in far away Saint Louis.

I didn’t try that again until I was forty-something but this time I didn’t stop. I have nine books looking for a home with a publisher. There’s a frog, a pet chicken, a mountain lion and kids–lots of kids involved. They’re coping with the heat, passing the time in the backseat of a car, learning about flower names, relationships, weather and, of course, responsibility.

I am NOT an illustrator but I do know enough about art to visualize my characters and occasionally sketch one out while writing. This is Oliver and he’s learning a lesson about why most frogs hop…and do not walk or wear shoes.