Carolyn Reeder tells how she became a writer . . . .

From the time I learned to read, I always had my nose stuck in a book. But it was many years before I discovered that writing can bring just as much pleasure as reading. I never planned to be a writer, even though I worked on school newspapers from junior high all the way through college. From the summer I was twelve and taught a neighborhood child to read—he had never learned, even though he was almost nine—I knew I'd be a teacher.

For a while, teaching and family life filled all my time. But then my husband and I began to work together in the evenings, writing non-fiction books for adults while our children did their homework. (We wrote about Shenandoah National Park, our favorite place to hike and camp.)

After a few years, my husband's job kept him too busy for writing, but I had more time since our children were older and were becoming independent. So I decided to try my hand at fiction and write for young people because I knew that kids love a good story.

At first, I wrote only during school vacations, but before long, I began to write during the school year, too. Writing became more and more important to me until finally I decided to give up teaching and be a full-time author. It's wonderful to have all the time I need to research and write my historical novels and still have time to do the other things I enjoy.

When I'm not at the library or in front of a computer, I like to play table tennis, bicycle, hike, visit with friends, and see plays. And, of course, I like to read.