Erin Thomas grew up surrounded by dogs, books and a pesky younger brother. Her closet held a secret, small door that led to the attic, there was a haunted castle just up the street, and she was sure that lions lived in the storm sewer tunnels. This was all in Whitby, Ontario. Erin was accused more than once of having an overactive imagination.
Luckily, her parents kept the house well stocked with comic books, Nancy Drew novels and spiral-bound notebooks with unicorns on the cover, so that overactive imagination had plenty of room to play.
Erin studied English at McMaster University and went on to work as a technical writer in the software industry, which required a different sort of imagination. She went back to school and obtained her Bachelor of Education degree from York University. Becoming a teacher was a much better fit and meant more time spent around kids, books and stories. Erin took a course in writing for children at a bookstore in Toronto. After that, there was no going back. These were the books she wanted to write.
Erin’s first book with Orca Book Publishers was inspired by her experience as a Ski Patroller at a local ski resort. Another early book featured dragons, with which Erin has less experience. To date, she has had seven novels published for kids and teens, largely for the reluctant reader market. Several of her books have been Canadian Children’s Book Centre “Best Books for Kids and Teens” selections. Erin also writes non-fiction articles for LesPlan, an educational publisher.
Erin teaches creative writing to writers of all ages through school visits and local writing organizations. She is the Children’s Books instructor for Centennial College’s post-graduate diploma program in Children’s Media and teaches creative writing through the Oshawa Senior Citizens’ Centre. She is a member of CANSCAIP, the Writers’ Community of Durham Region and The Writers’ Union of Canada. She is represented by Rachel Letofsky of the CookeMcDermid Literary Agency.
Erin still lives in Whitby, Ontario. She is pleased to report that has not seen any storm-sewer-dwelling lions in several years.