June HarrisJune Harris received her first encouragement in writing when she won second place in a county essay contest as a seventh grader in her native Mississippi. She continued writing through high school in Arizona, and received another writing award in colege. After graduating from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona, she began a life-long career in education, but she was hooked on writing and kept writing in her spare time. She received a master's degree in English from the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, and a Ph. D. in reading from the University of Arizona. Her first book, a Gothic romance, was published in 1982. She has written predominantly historical fiction to this point, but she is in the process of writing a contemporary thriller. Ms. Harris currently resides in Arizona. She is the mother of five children and the grandmother of nine. She has taken up writing full time in her retirement. Read More Read Less