Pretty much everyone calls me Ginny.

I publish under my fancy name, Virginia, and make quilts under my nickname. I don’t know why I make the distinction, but for some reason it feels right.

I grew up outside of Washington, D.C., and have lived in Pennsylvania, California, and North Carolina. My first publication, Carrier, was published in 2005 by Swan Scythe Press, and after teaching for ten years, I returned to writing in early 2015. My family’s restaurant, Currituck BBQ Company, published its family cookbook in 2017, and I edited that with my dad, a collaboration for which I’ll always be grateful.

Inspired by my grandmother’s sewing, I began quilting in 2009 and now make quilts, usually in a modern traditionalist style. My specialty is appliqué, and I make show quilts and teach quilting at local, national, and international events.

When I’m low on creative energy, I turn to Irish poets; vintage embroidery and patchwork; the work of my photographer and artist friends; old junk; and food – pretty much all food except gross cheeses, and sadly, there are many of those.

In 2018, I was lucky enough to go back to teaching English (and sewing!) at an independent school in Durham and have been doing so ever since. I live in Chapel Hill with my husband; my daughters, who are so lovely and so ridiculous; two cats; and a black lab, who is rescued and a big, big baby.