Raised in the south, Wall Street Journal and USA TODAY bestselling author MariaLisa deMora learned about the magic of books at an early age. Every summer, she would spend hours in the local library, devouring books of every genre. Self-described as a book-a-holic, she says “I’ve always loved to read, but then I discovered writing, and found I adored that, too. For reading…if nothing else is available, I’ve been known to read the back of the cereal box.”

deMora​ has penned a variety of stories, with five established series that include motorcycle romance, veteran repatriation, and time travel, as well as a romantic standalone, dark suspense, and a legal thriller. Her website is filled with links and information, as well as extras like character interviews, playlists, poetry, and trailer videos!

She’s a wanna-be hiker, working on a “bucket list” of hikes like Knobstone; completed in four days mid-April 2014 – whoooo! On that list is the Appalachian Trail, and she started a section hike beginning with the first 51 miles in Georgia, May 2014, launching from the southern terminus on Springer Mountain. Now and then she looks west towards the PCT but says that’s a level of difficult she’s not yet ready to tackle. Here’s a link to her trail journal.

She embraces her inner geek, working in the tech field for a publishing company for a couple decades. A sometime PC gamer, she still plays EverQuest after all these years. She says, “What can I say, I’m loyal (see above, I’m an Oilers fan). My oldest character there is more than fifteen years old, I can’t abandon her now! Yeah, I play a little WoW, and have a coupla toons there, too.”

On music, she says, “I love music of nearly any genre — jazz, country, rock, alt rock, metal, classical, bluegrass, rap, hip hop … you name it, I listen to it. I can often be seen dancing through the house in the early mornings. But I really, REALLY love live music. My favorite thing with music is seeing bands in small, dive bars [read: small, intimate venues]. If said bar [venue] has a good selection of premium tequila, then that’s a plus!”

Her short bio reads, “Plate-spinner / cat herder at work; totally geeked author; avid reader; single mom in the thick of autism at home; hockey freak; motorcycle momma; wanna-be hiker; usta-be/on-again EQ gamer.”

In many of the books I write, the story can touch on topics that are important and relevant to today’s society, and echo challenges we might be encountering within our own lives. Visit my Empower Yourself page for links to the information I researched for the story, so folks invested in the subject matter can cultivate greater knowledge. Not intended as a “be all, end all” source of information, these curated links should be looked at as more of a jumping-off point. Go forth and conquer!