The Detroit, Michigan, native’s first novel, One Step from Wonderland, was published by Avalon Books in 1989. With a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Wayne State University and a master’s degree in English and history from Texas A&M University, she has worked as a newspaper feature writer and publications specialist. In Texas, she taught community education classes in short story writing. She is also the author of four nonfiction books along with many short stories and articles.

McDaniel still writes nonfiction and edits but devotes most of her time to fiction because she loves the challenge of making things up. She reads in many genres and has written mainly romances because of the happy endings.

She and her husband, a native Texan, moved to Hixson 14 years ago and enjoy the area and the people so much they’ve made East Tennessee their permanent home. Her paranormal romance novel Inseparable is available from The Wild Rose Press, and she’s looking for a publisher for her recently completed baby-boomer romance, Backwater Blues.