Chris Mandeville writes nonfiction books for writers, as well as science fiction and fantasy.After growing up in California and graduating from the University of California at Berkeley, Chris married a U.S. Air Force officer and moved from state to state, as well as to British Columbia, before settling in Colorado. She currently lives in the woods of the Rocky Mountains with her family.Chris loves coffee, dogs, action movies, mystery and suspense novels, hockey, Cal football, Native American lore, Firefly, and foosball. She likes to cook and bake, and usually has a cooking show or a re-run of Castle keeping her company in the kitchen. Though she cohabitates with three cats, she's really a dog person and currently resides with her service dog Finn and two new puppies. She's not a morning person by any stretch of the imagination, and she isn't one for keeping any kind of regular schedule, much to her morning-person-husband's dismay. She drinks a lot of coffee, especially when she's writing, which she likes to do in binges. Her favorite writers include Jeffery Deaver, Lucia St. Clair Robson, Faye Kellerman, John Hart, Joss Whedon, Robert Crais, Jim Butcher, Diane Mott Davidson, Chris Bohjalian, and Neil Gaiman, among many others. Volunteer work is very important to Chris. She's volunteered for the Red Cross, Project Sanctuary, Mountain High Service Dogs, and for numerous schools and writing organizations. She spent more than ten years on the Board of Directors of Pikes Peak Writers, five of those as president. She's attended the past fourteen Pikes Peak Writers Conferences and helps raise money for the PPWC Scholarship Fund whenever she can. She also volunteers for Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, Castle Rock Writers, and SuperStars Writing Seminars.Chris has taught writing workshops for writers' groups along the Front Range of Colorado on a variety of topics including world-building, character building, backstory, pitching, improv writing, writer's block, plotting, NaNoWriMo, and building better beginnings.When Chris isn't writing, she and Finn can often be found at writing events. Check her website to find out where you might spot them next.