“I am the only daughter of my father's fourth plural wife, twenty-eighth of forty-eight children—a middle kid, you might say, with a middle kid's propensity for identity crisis.” This first line from chapter one of Daughter of the Saints defines my place in the family constellation and the dilemmas I've faced throughout my life. I believe I've had a happier childhood than most people; nonetheless my family was plagued by secrecy and lies, by poverty and the threat of prison and government raids. I was unable to reconcile the inequities and illegalities of the polygamous lifestyle and broke with the fundamentalist group to marry my high school sweetheart. Now, many years, four children and a growing number of grandchildren later, I know that monogamy can be as challenging as polygamy, and that happiness is a do-it-yourself project. My late husband, a Vietnam veteran, has been an example of courage and commitment in the face of discouraging odds, and he has inspired me to keep on a path with purpose throughout life. After his passing, I married an author of detective fiction, Christopher "Topper" Jones.

I recently completed my Ph.D. in Creative Writing at UNLV. In addition to teaching writing, I conduct life coaching programs for various clients who inspire and thrill me with their success. I have worked as a transformational trainer with Lifespring, Rising Star Communication Training, VisionWorks Training and Emerald City Enterprises, where I designed and delivered communication seminars for corporations, small businesses, organizations, individuals, families, couples, adults, teens and children.

I've always written and I usually love writing. I've published the following books: In My Father's House, which won first prize for biography in the Utah State Writing Contest and the Publisher's Prize; edited and contributed to Inside Out: A Guide to Creative Writing in the Classroom, a compilation of essays for the Utah Arts Council; Predators, Prey, and Other Kinfolk (hardbound) and Daughter of the Saints (paperback) which also won first prize in the Utah State Writing Contest and the WILLA first prize for memoir; The Sisterhood: Inside the Lives of Mormon Women; and Finding Karen: An Ancestral Mystery. My work in progress is Homefires about my family’s struggle with PTSD and Agent Orange via the Vietnam War. My stories have been anthologized in such volumes as The Stories that Shape Us and A Great and Peculiar Beauty. I've published essays, articles, stories and books in various magazines and journals, receiving a variety of honors, including a Sigma Delta Chi award, a prize from the American Academy of Pediatrics, recognition from the Junior Leagues of America, the ALA Booklist, and a Governor's Media Award for Excellence. I am a happier and a better person when I'm writing than when I am not.