ABOUT JANIE

A native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, Janie Dempsey Watts has strong roots in both Chattanooga and Ringgold, Georgia, where she spent much of her childhood on horseback at her family’s farm. She moved to California for college and received journalism degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Southern California. She has been extensively published in newspapers, magazines, and anthologies, including the Christian Science Monitor, Guideposts, Georgia Backroads Magazine, and the Chicken Soup for the Soul series.  For nine years, she was a columnist for Catoosa Life Magazine.

A master storyteller, Janie is the author of two novels (Moon Over Taylor's Ridge and Return to Taylor's Crossing), two short story collections (Mostly True and Mothers, Sons, Beloveds, and Other Strangers), and a children's picture book titled Pap Pap Goes to Paris: And So Does Ricky!  

 After many years of living in California, Janie returned to North Georgia to live close to the family farm and Taylor's Ridge. When not reading or writing, she enjoys walking on the farm with her family and their Goldendoodle.