I graduated from Syracuse University in 2006 with a Bachelor of Science in Interior Design. I work in Rochester, NY where I'm an NCIDQ certified commercial interior designer. My clients include hospitals, senior living, K-12 schools, colleges and universities and some office/corporate work.
I always wanted to write a novel, but struggled with finding a story I wanted to tell. As a design major, I hadn't done any creative writing since seventh grade. I thought the relatively small and closed architecture and design community in Rochester would be a great setting. Everybody knows everybody, and we have an ever evolving cast of guest characters in the form of our clients and industry sales representatives. I quickly realized that architectural egos, prestigious projects and bizarre clients could stand in for landed estates, yearly incomes, and sycophantic cousins, and set out adapting Jane Austen's Persuasion to modern times. Persuasion is about getting a second chance when you're way past your prime at 27 years old. I was 27 when I started the project.
Persuasion gave me a great guide in terms of number of characters, pacing, and structure. As a first time author, I tried to follow the old adage "write what you know", so my main character became an interior designer (like me), a Syracuse University grad (like me) who fell in love with a boy who moved to Denmark (Where I spent a semester abroad in 2005). Since I started writing again, I find I have ideas for all sorts of my own stories again, and while I'll always love Jane, I hope my next project will be an entirely original creation.
In addition to working full time, I'm now working on Masters of Science in Strategic Marketing degree while I query agents about Influence. I also enjoy portrait photography, and would love to spend my days writing in between photo sessions.
In addition to Jane Austen, I love all period dramas, including Downton Abbey. Other favorite series include Friday Night Lights, Mad Men, Arrested Development, and True Blood. Some favorite books include Room by Emma Donahue, American Wife by Curtis Sittenfield, and About a Boy by Nick Hornby.
