After Swanee Ballman graduated from Moravian College (Bethlehem, Pa.), she taught English in high schools in Pennsylvania and Maryland, where she initiated a high school literary magazine. When her husband was transferred to Florida in 1984, she became the Central Florida representative for Charlesbridge Publishing (Watertown. MA), and promoted the process of writing to teachers in both public and private schools.

While living in St. Cloud, she was active within the school district; she received the Osceola County Volunteer of the Year award in 1993. As a volunteer, she served as advisor to the St. Cloud (Fla.) High School's student-generated school newspaper and was an active member of the School Advisory Team for a number of years.

In 1996 her first children's title was published by Concordia (St. Louis, Mo.). A second followed in 1997. In 2000 her first adult novel, Tamarind, hit the shelves. To date she has published five children's titles, 5 YA novels, and one adult novel. Tamarind is now a screenplay and is slated for filming in 2009, while she is working on her third screenplay.

Swanee served on the board of the Florida Publishers Association and the Florida Writers Association, where she also served a term as a regional director.

She is presently president of Jawbone Publishing Corporation, where she serves as an editor, publisher, and ghostwriter.

Home & Garden > Home & Garden (Other) What does "home" mean to you?

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What Is My Home?

My home is not a physical structure. It is not in any particular location. It isn't built of bricks and wood; neither does it have a driveway or a picket fence (although I like all of these and will never turn them down!). To me, home is a state of being, a sense of belonging and a feeling of significance. It is where I feel loved, where I gather around my favorite people and where I feel the most at peace.

I have experienced many homes in my lifetime. In my youth, I felt at home and safe under the care of loving parents. They offered a refuge for me from the insults...

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