About Kristen

I’m a Western Canadian girl. Born in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in <cough, cough> Calgary, I’ve lived most of my life in Edmonton. During my childhood, my parents moved me through other parts of southern Alberta and even the Northwest Territories. I’m a city girl with a country soul. I love nature and the outdoors, but I’m a couch potato with a passion for chocolate and wine.
I like to say my background is that of a Western European mongrel. If all my ancestors were in one place at one time, they’d either kill each other or put on one hell of a drunk. I have ancestors who are English, Irish, Scottish, Swedish, and Norwegian. I also know of some Polish and Ukrainian in there.
Growing up, both of my parents were avid readers, so it’s no wonder I became one too. My favorite shopping trips were to bookstores. (Also, fabric and craft stores, but I’m not going to talk about my out-of-control collection of unfinished craft projects right now.)
A childhood infatuation with fairy tales grew into an obsession with fantasy fiction. Since most of my favorite authors also penned science fiction, I branched out in that direction too. It was around this time that I encountered a statement that said; because fantasy and science fiction are set against a background that is so wholly unbelievable, the characters and their interactions have to be even more true to life than even the driest non-fiction. I think this is where my obsession with complex characters and plots came from.
Now that I’m a “woman of a certain age” and suddenly single again, my reading tastes have become pretty far-reaching. Most of the time you’ll find me curled up in my favorite chair with either a cup of coffee or a glass of wine at my elbow. Which one it is, is usually dependent on the time of day. At least, during those times I’m not at the day job making numbers tell stories.
See that lovely family photo below? That’s me with my parents a long, long, long time ago. Look at that background. Is it any wonder why I’m so fascinated with books?