Ann Whitaker lives in the heart of Texas with her journalist husband and two dogs-Jolie Blon, a spoiled Cajun poodle, and Mardi Gras, a retired pet therapy dog. She’s been writing in one form or another all her life. A reformed high school and college English teacher, she’s published poetry, non-fiction, and short fiction in newspapers, literary journals, and magazines. Her fictional characters are often larger than life and sometimes find themselves in absurd situations. Songwriter David Allan Coe says the perfect country and western song has to have certain elements: Mama, trains, trucks, prison, and gettin’ drunk. Ann’s stories almost always have a dog. She’s currently working on another novel and a collection of slice-of-life essays about everything from a 350-pound roofer to a love affair with a kitchen sink. She calls it "chicken-fried Nora Ephron." When not writing, Ann plays mah jongg, reads, sings, and plays the guitar. Visit her at http: //www.AnnWhitaker.com