Before I started writing plays, I raised my kids, ran a household, and had a long a career as a journalist for The Associated Press and other news outlets. I also wrote three nonfiction books for major publishers, including "The Girls in the Van," about Hillary Clinton. During the pandemic, I took a Zoom course in playwriting with Primary Stages/ESPA and fell in love with the genre. Since then, I've taken numerous courses, attended as much theater as I can, participated in a half-dozen writers' groups, and had 20 of my plays performed for festivals, theaters, podcasts and other venues. In August 2024, a short comedy I wrote called "And I Ate a Pear" won best script, best director and best actor at a monthlong festival in NYC, and in 2026, my full-length play about a Jewish family in turmoil over the Israel-Gaza crisis, "Susan and Her Daughters: A Modern Fiddler," was a finalist for the Thomas Barbour Playwrights' Award. I was also honored to be one of 50 playwrights chosen from 300 applicants to attend the prestigious Valdez Theatre Conference in 2026.