Valanee Eriksen grew up in Richland, Washington and has been writing all of her life. Poetry was her first love and when her children were growing, she wrote poems about their everyday life. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education, and in1991, she received her MFA in creative writing, poetry. Her adult poetry has appeared in literary magazines and her children’s poetry in The Friend. Her chapter book Christmas Bells & Hero Tails was published in 2015. She is a former kindergarten teacher and a retired professor of English composition. She lives in Payson, Utah with her daughter, three grandchildren and their three poodles.

Author Biography: Book specific

Every kid needs a hero and as a kid, Valanee Eriksen found her heroes in myths and legends. As a child she was so near-sighted she couldn’t see across the street, so she spent a lot of time reading. One day a door-to-door- salesman talked her mom into buying the complete set of The New Junior Classics. Her two favorite volumes of that collection were Myths and Legends and Hero Tales. These were stories of courageous souls who were granted superhuman strength to defeat evil. As she told these stories to her children and grandchildren, they told her they wanted a kid to be the hero. And so, the inspiration for The Sword of Poseidon was born. Valanee has three daughters, eight grandchildren and is a retired professor of English composition. She lives in Payson, Utah with her daughter, three grandchildren and a hero of a dog named Moose.