I grew up in Berkeley, California, amid engineers and writers, playing Dungeons & Dragons and whacking my friends with foam swords. I have lived in France, North Carolina, and New York, but I keep coming back to the San Francisco Bay Area. I studied creative writing and politics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, then, after a long delay, got a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing with distinction from San Francisco State University, along with a certificate in teaching English composition. I have served as chair of the board of directors for the Writers Grotto, as Bay Area ambassador for the Authors Guild, as Bay Area organizer for the Online News Association, and as a director and Northern California chapter president for the American Society of Journalists and Authors. I am fluent in English and French and have dabbled with determination in five other languages.