I was born August 19, 1980, on my parents' first wedding anniversary, in a small town in eastern North Carolina. I'm the oldest of four children. I'm a leo, which means I'm supposed to be bossy, interfering, and intolerant. But I'm also supposed to be broad-minded, warm-hearted, and creative, so maybe it all evens out.

I've always loved books. My parents would read my favorite books to me so often that I'd memorize them before I had learned how to read. Some of my favorite memories as a kid are of my mom taking my siblings and me to the public library. I'd always check out a big stack of books and then have them all read within a week. The first time I can remember writing a story that wasn't for school, but simply because I wanted to write, was when I was eight years old. I wrote and illustrated a book called The Lonely Rectangle. It was a story about a rectangle that had been thrown in the trash and felt unloved until someone found it and took it home to use as a table. No, it was not a box or anything like that, it was just a plain rectangle. I have no clue why I decided to write about a geometric shape. It wasn't like I was particularly fond of math or anything.

I spent my junior year of high school and part of my senior year living just outside of West Palm Beach, Florida, where my family moved to the summer I turned sixteen. I had a hard time making friends, but the good thing that came out of it was that I started to spend a lot of time online since I had no one to hang out with after school. That was when I discovered online journals written by teen girls and even started my own, which I wrote under a pen name. It was that experience with online journals in 1996-1997, the predecessor of today's blogs, that helped inspire Something to Blog About.

I knew from a young age that I wanted to be a writer. Well, actually I wanted to be a ballerina, an archaeologist, a teacher, AND a writer, all at the same time. But after a while I figured out that I'd never taken a ballet lesson in my life, I didn't particularly like to get dirty, and I hated being in a classroom all day, so that really only left writer as my future job. My family advised me to get a back up plan, which meant, "study something else in school that you can earn a living at while waiting for your books to sell." So I studied graphic design, tested out of as many classes as I possibly could to avoid sitting in so many classrooms, and got my degree.

I'm still a web designer by day and write my books during my lunch hours and at night. The husband and I have been married since June 17, 2000, but he says I'm not allowed to talk about him on my website so I can't tell you that he loves dragons and tattoos, or that he thinks I'm the most hilarious person ever. Okay, that's a lie. He actually thinks he's the most hilarious person ever. We currently share our house with one hyper dog named Chloe, and three lazy cats named Elmo, Callie, and Bandit.

I am represented by Stephen Barbara at Foundry Literary + Media.

How do you pronounce your name?
Shay-nuh. Like Shane with an "uh" sound on the end. Thank you for not calling me Shanna, Shawna, Shannon, Sharon, or China. All very nice names, of course, but none of them are mine though I've been called each at some point in my life. Yes, China. I have no clue how someone came up with that from Shana.

What kind of stuff do you like to read?
Almost anything and everything. I love to read, especially fantasy and young adult. My favorite books are Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger, and Emily Climbs by Lucy Maud Montgomery. I also love anything by Meg Cabot and Sarah Dessen.

Have any favorite movies?
I love fantasy movies. My favorites are The Princess Bride, Labyrinth, The Goonies, The Neverending Story, Willow, the Lord of the Rings movies, and the Harry Potter movies. I have a weakness for teen comedies too, my favorite being 10 Things I Hate About You.

What is the best song ever?
"Dancing Days" by Led Zeppelin.

Were you singing along to "Mmmbop" in your car this morning?
Um, no comment. (Probably.)

Can you touch your nose with your tongue?
Yes, I can. It's a very useful talent that will win friends and influence people.