Books

My Invented Life (Henry Holt)

Sister, Secrets, and Shakespeare

With Roz and Eva everything is a contest–who can snag the best role in the school play, have the cutest boyfriend, pull off the craziest prank. Still, they’re as close as sisters can be. Until Eva deletes Roz from her life. When Eva chooses the annoyingly petite cheerleaders over her, Roz fantasizes about slipping bovine growth hormone into their Gatorade. Roz has a suspicion about Eva, and Eva taunts Roz with a dare, leading to an act of total insanity. Drama geeks clamor for attention, Shakespearean insults fly, and Roz steals the show.

NM Book Award for Best Gay Novel

Second place young adult novel, LGBT chapter of Romance Writers of America

“Roz's voice is witty and genuine as she moves through the ups and downs of coming out (and eventually coming clean). Evocative of Boy Meets Boy and Dramarama, this makes for fun, thought-provoking reading.” ―Publishers Weekly

“Narrator Roz is funny, well intentioned, and likable despite her cluelessness, and she is surrounded by a realistic cast of adult and teen characters representing a wide variety of viewpoints and sexual preferences. This is an enjoyable read that will be especially appealing to theater aficionados.” ―School Library Journal

“This debut is a supportive, enjoyable read.” ―Booklist

Get thee to the insult generator, thou beslubbering clay-brained moldwarp.

Work In Progress

Plugged in Girl

Start with order. Move to chaos. Find adventure, love, and hope on the way.

Jacq, a self-identified nerd from the Bay Area, has tried everything to control her anxiety, but meds and counseling haven’t changed her into the brave, outspoken person she wants to be. When an attempt at immersion therapy turns into a shoplifting disaster, Jacq’s parents threaten to take away an experimental treatment that she sees as her only hope for a normal life. To delay the inevitable, Jacq runs away with Hiro, a boy she barely knows, and who needs to leave town for reasons of his own. The road trip ends in a ditch in an off-the-grid community in New Mexico. Encounters with her mom’s ex-boyfriend, a guard donkey, a trailer roof mystic, and the ferocious Mesa Ghosts are transformative. But the real change happens when Jacq’s newly discovered half-brother recruits her for an act of eco-sabotage, forcing her to make choices with real consequences. When it matters, she learns to listen to her own voice.