10 Things I'd like my readers to know about me by Kimberly Belle

I fell in love with my husband-a Dutchman-in my last semester of college, and moved there soon after graduating. What was meant to be a few months turned into twelve years. I speak the language, I know the culture, and even though I don't have the passport to prove it, I am in my heart and soul half Dutch. My husband and I live in the States now, but every chance we get, we're hopping a plane to Amsterdam.

Speaking of Amsterdam, oh, how I love that city. The bikes and the people and the 17th Century canals so picturesque it's like stepping into a postcard. Amsterdam is a city with soul, and no matter how long I'm gone between visits, it always feels like home.

Living abroad has made me extremely open minded and given me a live-and-let-live mentality. I have zero patience for prejudice and bigotry, whether for the color of your skin, the name of your God or the gender of your partner. The upsurge in hate crimes as a result of this latest election is both infuriating and heartbreaking at the same time.

I am a yoga fan, some might even say a fanatic. For me it's more than just the physical. It's about getting grounded, about letting the story go long enough to let my subconscious take over. Especially when I'm stuck, I've found that as soon as I let go of the story and get upside down, my plot knots unwind and I figure out how to move forward.

I'm not one of those writers who penned her first novel in crayon. Writing was something I always dreamed of doing, but for the longest time it fell by the wayside for a job that paid the bills. My first career was as fundraiser for nonprofits, and though the work was fulfilling, something about it always felt off, like there was something else I was supposed to be doing. That feeling settled when I began writing fulltime, and now I can't imagine doing anything else.

I am always, always reading a book. As soon as one is finished, I reach for the next one in the pile on my nightstand or Kindle. I'll read pretty much any book you put in front of me, from classics to suspense to romance to memoir. The only genre I don't love is horror, and that's because I'm a scaredy cat.

I spent two amazing, life-changing weeks in South Africa, building a Habitat for Humanity house in a township outside Cape Town. Ten years later, my family and I returned, and we spent a sunny afternoon with the homeowner. Seeing how he turned that house into a home was even more rewarding than building it.

Maybe this goes back to my love affair with Holland, but I am a huge EDM fan, which got its start in the Netherlands back when I lived there. I especially love the Dutch DJs-Tiësto, Armin van Buren, Afrojack, Fedde Le Grande, Sander van Doorn…the list goes on and on. I've seen them all, and multiple times. Yes, I'm older than the typical EDM fan, but I don't care. Have glow stick, will rave.

I am in general a very healthy eater, but I also exercise so that I can cheat. Sometimes you just need French fries, or a big hunk of bread smeared with butter, or a giant slice of cake with extra icing. I refuse to feel guilty about it. Life is too short to not enjoy good food.

It's not a good day unless I've had at least one belly laugh.