Some of you have asked me where I got the idea for The Forever Farmhouse.True confession time: I was a very geeky child. Some kids love to play outside and have to be forced to come in and do their homework. I loved to read and had to be forced outside to play. That's me with a week's worth of library books!

My nerdy personality carried forward into adulthood, and I became a professor. For years I was surrounded by studious. scholarly people, and I loved it!

Ryan, the hero of The Forever Farmhouse, is a brilliant scientist who's more comfortable studying water samples than dealing with people. I know so many great guys like Ryan from my days at the university. They're often funny, and fiercely loyal, but a little quirky. Ryan is a tribute to those scientific guys whose banter I always enjoyed in the faculty lunchroom.

Alfie, the child Ryan didn't know he had, is a precocious, nerdy ten year old who's having trouble in school. I was never bullied myself, but I do know the feeling of not quite fitting in with the other kids in the class. I also know from experience that being academically inclined doesn't always mean you're the teacher's pet. Instead, it can lead to behavior problems, which is what happens to Alfie. Like him, I got in trouble at school, though my main crimes were passing notes and reading fun books in class rather than paying attention to the lesson. I'm guessing some of you committed similar misdemeanors… 

I was fortunate to have family members who encouraged my interest in books and reading. Alfie doesn't have that asset until Ryan returns to Teaberry Island. The heroine of the story, Mellie, has to weigh the advantage of having Ryan mentor Alfie with the risk that Ryan will discover he's actually Alfie's father. She's a great mom, and Alfie's interests win out, even though getting close with Ryan brings back painful memories.