Rebecca with her daughter and son

When I became a young mom, I began to read nursery rhymes, poems, and picture books to my son and daughter. That's when I decided I wanted to write for children. It was a big dream, but one I was determined to make come true.

When the children napped, I wrote. After they went to bed, I wrote more, often staying up all hours of the night. I tried to get up most mornings before they did. And I wrote. Writers don't just dream of writing, they find a way to write. And I was never happier than when I was writing poetry and being a mother.

After years of rejection, I began to see some success. First, magazines accepted my poems for publication, and then—a few years later—my first book was accepted (a collection of poems) called Sweet Dreams of the Wild, published by Boyds Mills Press. Soon, an even bigger dream came true: I was able to write poems for anthologies. Lee Bennett Hopkins became my mentor and friend.