I am excited to announce my virtual blog tour with Pump Up Your Book. The tour is scheduled for the month of April for my middle-grade novel, Elanora and the Salt Marsh Mystery, and will include reviews, interviews, blog posts and a couple of giveaways.

Elanora’s Beginning

I started writing the book five years ago after returning from a trip to Sanibel, Florida. The idea was conceived while kayaking in Tarpon Bay and listening to our guide as he talked about the destruction of red mangrove forests. As I gazed at the tangled trees, a story about a small critter who saves the mangroves popped into my head. The first draft took several months to complete, and since that time I have revised the manuscript four more times.

Wait…the title is Elanora and the Salt Marsh Mystery, so how do the mangroves fit in? It turns out that salt marshes are sandwiched between fresh-water marshes and mangrove forests. As I researched red mangroves in southwest Florida, I realized that the setting just wouldn’t work.

Next up: Part 2

Elanora and the Salt Marsh Mystery sketches and book cover by Michigan illustrator Lori Taylor.
Colorations by Graphic Artist Peter Chiappetta.