My story

I have had many careers in my life but my favorite is being an acting teacher and writer. I studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts before going to State University of New York to study Computer Science and Communications. I worked at IBM for many years but decided that I prefer to teach and received a Master of Science in Education degree from California State University at Fullerton and have taught Reading to college students.

I wrote A Small Life because my mother always needed to know the circumstances surrounding her abandonedment soon after her birth in Chile. When she passed, I missed her terribly and decided to write a story based on her life, to honor her, especially her gift as a classical pianist. Even though the story is fiction, I felt that creating this world satisfied my curiosity of what might have happened, and it gave me great satisfaction. When researching the topic of orphans during that time period, I found it was replete with class-based bigotry and racism. My three protagonists, all Catholic, used their faith to guide them in life. Some reject their faith while others are reinforced by it. They travel different paths, but their lives, unbeknownst to them, are inextricably interwoven, demonstrating that every life, no matter how small, is significant.