Get to know Denise…

Denise Nicole was born and raised in Washington state. She grew up in a family of four humans and varying numbers of animals, including dogs, cats, and a bunny. She has loved animals since a young age and that love only grows stronger each day. While she adores all animals, dogs have a special place in her heart. She considers her family's dog to be her little sister (her "sisfur"). She dreams of one day owning a little home zoo of animal companions.

Although Denise earned her college degree in Communication at Washington State Universitiy, she first attended University of Washington with a focus on Psychology and Sociology studies. She likes to think of herself as half Cougar/half Husky and knows her team will always win the Apple Cup no matter what!

Denise has enjoyed writing stories since childhood. She used to write her own books by stapling page after page together and even gave one away as a Christmas gift. Her young self always thought the longer the story was the better. She has also loved reading since she was child and used to spend hours and hours immersed in books. Rereading her favorites quickly became a habit. One year, she even got the honor of being a "bat girl" for Minor League Baseball's Team just because she read more hours than anyone else. So many fun prizes were given out for reading, but it didn’t matter because she would have read anyway!

Her love of reading and writing spans across different genres and age groups. While her first book was a picture book and she has since written and published stories for middle-grade kids, Denise has also been working on a novel and looks forward to one day publishing books for an older audience as well. She loves to read thrillers, romances, fantasies, and more!

Outside of books, Denise loves to run long distances. She picked this hobby up on her own and trained herself from running a mile to running a half marathon. She loves to run for fun and to relieve stress but also still enjoys entering races now and then. She placed 1st overall in her first ever 5K race and was awarded 1st place female at another. However, her favorite is the annual Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving day which she has never placed in!

Denise also enjoys baking, especially making delicious vegan goodies. They are not always the most beautiful, but they sure are tasty.

Of course, spending time with animals is one of her favorite things in the world. Denise's ideal day would be going for a run in the morning and then spending the rest of her time reading and writing, with animals right by her side.