I wanted to be a ballerina. I changed my mind.

I grew up before there were strict leash laws.

What interests me is what children go through while growing up.

I didn't start out writing to give children hope, but I'm glad some of them found it.

Otis was inspired by a boy who sat across the aisle from me in sixth grade. He was a lively person. My best friend appears in assorted books in various disguises.

One rainy Sunday when I was in the third grade, I picked up a book to look at the pictures and discovered that even though I did not want to, I was reading. I have been a reader ever since.

Writers are good at plucking out what they need here and there.