Descended from Mother Shipton, a 16th Century English prophetess, Jude Atkins shares her famous ancestor's love for the written word. An avid reader and mystery fan, Jude honed her skills as a freelance journalist and short story author by writing about everything from a favorite uncle's World War II experiences to family violence in aboriginal families. Jude has been a section leader for the Time Warner Authors forum, an editor for the Open Directory forum, an Askme.com expert on electronic publishing, and the owner of the Books We Love author promotion group.