Mary Russel started writing in grade school, when she had a poem published by "Highlights", a children's magazine. As an adult, Mary has been writing business, lifestyle, dog, and craft articles for Associated Content and Seed, a division of AOL, web content, and resumes.In an effort to make sense of an unhappy early childhood as a foster child, Mary Russel started writing her first book in 1997. A First Chapters contest on Gather.com motivated her to complete it in 2007. Friends, she met on Gather, inspired her to write her first published children's book, "Flickertail & Paint, Barnyard Sleuths"."Rudolph, A Child's Love Story', is based on Mary's early childhood. Although it is the story of a foster child and an adopted child, she hopes it will help all children learn to accept themselves. Mary has also been busy with revising the "Sleuth & Scribe', cozy mystery series for ages 13 and over. The first two books of the series "The Cold Case" and "The Car Lot" are now published.Her novels in progress are "The Bed & Breakfast", "The Hexagon Murders", and "The Steamer Trunk".