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About

Photo of April Mack

Welcome! I’m April, and I write YA fantasy novels where hope thrives and good always triumphs.

When I was young I struggled to make friends. Between loneliness and my desire to escape my stressful high school years, I dove into novels and only came up to breathe when reality forced me to. Though I’m in a much happier season of life now, I still vividly remember how good stories were one of my lifelines.

I still love to read novels, but now I also write them for the reader who needs an escape or proof that hope isn’t lost, like I did back then. The unexpected chosen one who grows to fulfill their destiny? Oh yes, please. Happily-ever-after endings? Aw, yeah, that’s the stuff. Star-crossed lovers who never give up? *swoon*

I have a BA in professional writing and am currently a member of Hope*Writers. In my twenties I worked as an editorial assistant for a national publisher and then as a production editor for a small magazine, but moving to Japan and having babies ended that chapter.

Now I’m in my thirties and live in the ol’ US of A. I spend my days sitting down with a pot of tea and my notes to let the stories in my head spill out of my fingers and onto my laptop. In the afternoons and evenings I am wife and mother to my little family, but when they’re at work and school the days are mine to create and imagine.


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A few extra facts about me:

  • I was born in 1985, fifteen days past my due date. My poor mother!
  • As my birth indicates, I’ve been a perfectionist procrastinator from the start and have been battling it my entire life. 😅 I’m in the thick of unlearning those habits now.
  • I am the third out of four generations in my family who have lived in Tokyo, Japan, even though we are all Caucasian Americans—my grandparents, my parents, my husband and I, and then our two sons (both of whom were born there). I’ve lived a total of 22 years in Japan so far. I’m currently living in Texas, USA, for the first time, though I’ve also lived in Illinois and Indiana.
  • My grandparents were and my parents are long-term missionaries. My husband and I worked at a missionary kid school for six years. I’m what they call a TCK, or an adult Third Culture Kid! 🇯🇵🇺🇸
  • I speak English and Japanese. I also used to be fluent in SEE (sign language), but I’ve gotten rather rusty. These days I speak a lot in GIFs and emojis. 😆
  • I love following DIY and interior design blogs and social media accounts. Decorating my home is like playing with a life-size dollhouse! I also like to draw and paint, and have a few original pieces hanging in my home.
  • I’m a minimalist. No, I don’t wear only black (I rarely wear any black, actually!) and I don’t live in an empty white apartment, as is the stereotype. But I love simple living and a good stuff purge.
  • I love to read! I particularly love YA fantasy novels and nonfiction books that help me learn and grow. But I’ll take good stories in any form—especially if there’s a love story involved 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨—including but not limited to webcomics, manga, anime, and even micro fiction on Twitter.
  • I have a soft spot for bunnies; we kept them as pets during my childhood. 🐰❤️ Netherland dwarf rabbits are my favorite!
  • I can’t stand coffee. 😖 I prefer Japanese teas (sencha, hōjicha, and sōkenbicha are my favorites). I drink a large pot of tea nearly every time I write. I also drink a lot of water all day long. Hydration is important! 🍵🚰
  • I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was 36, as that wasn’t a thing girls were diagnosed with in Japan during the ’90s. My teen years would have been really different if I had known then what I know now.
  • There is not enough willpower in the world to keep me from eating chocolate. Treats are never safe in my presence. 🍫🤤 (I love a good dango or daifuku too! 🍡 But quality chocolate simply can’t be beat.)