My writing career began when I was seven years old. I had an amazing teacher—Mrs.Pridatt—who told me I was going to be an author and that she would look for my books some day. I used to call her over, just to breathe her in: She smelled like perfumed press powder and walked in friendly clip-clops, her clogs smacking the floor. Perhaps she had something to do with me becoming both a teacher and a writer but it was a move to the Middle East that prompted me to publish my work.