About Me

I grew up in a family of musicians who supported and encouraged my early love of books. As a child, I devoured fiction and adored theater and art. As a grown-up, I am happily married to a painter, and my closest friends are writers and editors. I know the ups and downs of maintaining a rigorous creative practice, and the challenges and joys of making your passion your profession. 

For twelve years, I held editorial posts at the center of the children’s book publishing industry in New York City. As a senior editor at HarperCollins and as an editor at Disney-Hyperion and Scholastic, I was honored to work with talented authors and illustrators on fiction for young readers spanning a wide range of formats and genres. The shelves of books I’ve edited include picture books, early readers, chapter books, and numerous middle grade and young adult novels—from lush fantasies and intricately plotted mysteries to contemporary love stories and madcap classroom comedies.   

My authors’ books have been #1 New York Times bestsellers, Edgar Award nominees, New York Times Notable books, and Junior Library Guild selections, and have earned multiple starred reviews. Nothing is more satisfying to me than helping writers radically improve their work while staying true to their voice and vision.

I also love teaching, public speaking, and mentoring. As an adjunct instructor at Portland State University, I teach graduate-level courses in book publishing and developmental editing. To even better support creative professionals, I spent a year training and getting certified as a coach.

I was born in Colorado, grew up in British Columbia, earned my BA at Yale, launched my career in New York City, and now live in beautiful Portland, Oregon.