Brenda Hutcheson Fickey was born and raised in Camden, Arkansas, growing up in the Frenchport community, where her Arkansas Oil Days novels are set. She earned her BA in education from East Texas Baptist College and her MEd in language arts from the University of Alaska Anchorage. Her teaching specialties are English, history, and music. She has taught on public and private elementary, secondary, and university campuses in Texas, Alaska, Colorado, and Arkansas. She has also earned two diplomas from the Institute of Childrenrsquo;s Literature in Connecticut. After more than 25 years as a writing teacher, she published her first novel in 2007. She writes specifically for middle reader boys… and girls (ages 8-12) who are considered reluctant readers. Having been a reluctant reader herself, she has a passion for helping them build their reading skills to enjoy the written word. Her unique storytelling has successfully reached those in her target audience as well as avid young readers and adults alike. Her fans span a wide range of ages from all around the world. Brendarsquo;s Arkansas Oil Days Collection is a series of stand-alone novels loosely based on her familyrsquo;s history with the oil boom in South Arkansas during the 1920s. The backdrop for the setting is the Smackover oil fields and the communities in the surrounding areas. As she initially develops her plots, she starts with a story her grandmother told her when she was growing up. Then she creates an exciting tale of mystery and suspense with unpredictable twists and turns. Her novels are preserving a history few know about, a sense of community that has all but disappeared from our culture, and a family dynamic that is sorely lacking in our present-day society. Her fans enjoy being able to put themselves into her stories as if they were in the middle of the action and part of the family of characters.