Valerie Paez was born in San Antonio, Texas in 1976. Her parents divorced when she was four years old, so she grew up in San Antonio with her grandparents. She lived in Luxembourg for two years when she was in middle school. When she returned to San Antonio, she lived with her mother and step-father who she refers to as her father. She has two younger brothers, and one sister. Her maternal grandfather was from Laredo, Texas and her maternal grandmother was from Salinas, Mexico, So she's Tejano! She found her inspiration to write in 2009. At about the same time that her great-grandmother died, she began to read literature by authors such as Gloria Anzaldúa and Cherrie Moraga. These authors and the death of her great-grandmother helped her to come into her own "conocimiento." Valerie is very talented. She has written many works, including poems like "Shadows", "Breaking the Chains" and "From White to Brown the Evolution of My Skin Color," short stories like "A Vampire's Release," And a novel titled “A Heart's Journey.” She has won several awards, including the Liebster Award and the Premio Dartos Award. Today she lives in Texas, and her occupation is to teach technology classes to elementary school teachers. If you would like more information about Valerie, please visit her here https://about.me/valeriep3 .