I was born and raised in a community called Sodom, in the Appalachian Mountains of western NC. Growing up I learned the English, Scottish and Irish ballads from my older relatives, preserving and performing them for audiences today. I first published Come Go Home With Me, a work Life Magazine praised as Pure mountain magic - stories centered on childhood in that unforgettable community. In 2004 I published my first novel, My Old True Love, later released by Ballantine Books as a Reader's Circle Selection. My son, A.T.B: It'sWhatWeDo has been a WDC member since 2008, and I'm thrilled to be here as well.