Gay was raised in a military family and lived in 13 different locations throughout the U.S. and Germany before the time she was 15 years old. At that time, her parents retired to Florida with Gay and two of her siblings in tow. Gay has lived in Florida ever since, but loves to travel so many of her writings are set in a variety of places. Gay, who has a law degree, worked as a public servant in a local court system for 35 years until she retired to pursue her passion for writing. She created the Raisina Grape character in 1974 when she was just 12 years old. For that reason, she prefers to keep the Raisina stories set in the mid-1970s which is why you won't hear mention of personal computers, cellular phones, or social media in that series. When she is not writing, she is an avid lap swimmer. She volunteers her time in many different pursuits, including writing for a local environmental conservation non-profit, serving food at a shelter, mentoring a student at a local public school, and showing up as an ally for various LGBTQ+ events.
