About Diana
I'm originally from Houston, Texas, but I've lived in Oregon since 2000. I hold a B.A. In History and Gender Studies from Lewis & Clark College and a J.D. from Lewis & Clark Law School.
MY WRITING LIFE
When I was eleven, I won my first writing award: Poet Laureate of Thompson Intermediate. The prize was a book of poetry by Emily Dickinson. I took this as a sign from the powers that be: no matter how good a writer I might be, I could always draw inspiration from others and challenge myself to be better.
From there, I proceeded to win more books, tiny medals, and plastic trophies for poetry writing. I now use these writing skills to write hilarious parodies at work to get my coworkers to read and respond to otherwise boring emails.
In college, I made personal essays my preferred form after falling in love with the work of Annie Dillard, Alice Walker, bell hooks, and Dorothy Allison. These women shaped not only my growing voice as a writer, but also my views of the world and my place as an activist and writer within it. In law school, I learned to write briefs, memos, motions, and the like, before shifting into a career in technology as a business analyst where, yes, I also do a lot of writing. I have written commercial pieces on spec and previously published short fiction through the Manchester Board of Arts in the U.K.
My debut novel, SPOOKED., was published in September 2018 through Horseshoes & Hand Grenades Publishing, an independent press. The follow-up, BURNED., was published in October 2019. The third book in the series, CRUSHED., will be released in 2027.
While I am relatively new to fiction writing, my personal motto and life philosophy would be best described as "ABW -- always be writing."
MY NON-WRITING LIFE
I read books in all genres, but my favorite fiction genres are science fiction, paranormal, and young adult; in nonfiction, I lean toward social science and philosophy as they relate to pop culture, law, and/or feminism, popular physics, and American history. I'm also a sucker for a good political biography about the overlooked women of our past and the female leaders of our future.
I love road tripping and tend to spend weekends traveling all over the Pacific Northwest in search of quirky small-town festivals and rainswept cliffs where I can stand and stare moodily at the sea. I sometimes think I have salt water in my veins instead of blood. Because all this driving and brooding is really draining, I often follow these activities with massive quantities of Thai food.
When I am not plotting or writing, I am usually reading, cooking, watching TV, or filling up my phone with pet photos. I do volunteer work as an advocate for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. I collect perfume and have an obscene amount of makeup. I'm addicted to shoes. I have an inhumane tolerance for caffeine and recently tempered my coffee addiction with a new, semi-obsessive interest in tea.
My partner and I have three rescued pitbulls. We all live in a small town outside of Portland, Oregon.