I am an author, an animal advocate and a Canadian citizen. Born in Ontario, I grew up in a military family, and spent part of my childhood in Europe. I lived in Victoria, British Columbia, before moving to Oregon, where I now live with my partner and our very spoiled cat. I studied English and Philosophy at Carleton University in Ottawa and at the University of Toronto. After graduating, I taught high school English for a few years before getting my dream job as an editor at the University of Toronto – my favorite city! Later, just when I had started writing professionally, I was lucky enough to win three California Arts Council Artist-in-Residence grants to teach fiction writing to GATE high school students. It was a wonderful experience and I was awarded a California Association of Teachers of English Excellence Award for those classes. I then began my novel-writing career in earnest, using the pseudonym Lauren Wright Douglas, and won the Lambda Literary Award for my second novel, Ninth Life. Stolen is my eleventh novel and the first written under my own name, Linda J Wright. I have been an animal rights advocate and activist for nearly 30 years. In 1990, I founded the rescue organization The Cat People, and served as its first President. Since then, I have served on the Boards of several animal welfare organizations and have been a consultant to dozens of animal rescue/welfare groups. In 1999 I was part of the team that rescued Keiko the orca (the real Free Willy) and rehabilitated him in Newport, Oregon, setting him free off Iceland. I continue to advocate for animals through my writing.